Noodles and Company
by hummingyay
Summary: Mako is working part time at Narook's seaweed noodlery. Eight months into Mako's employment there, Narook hires his niece Korra as a hostess in hopes of helping her recover from her most recent breakup. Narook asks Mako to help Korra and, because Mako doesn't know how to say "no," he begrudgingly agrees to his boss' request. - Makorra, mentions of Korrasami, AU
1. prologue

One of Mako's favorite things about working at Narook's was the fact that it was a fairly quiet place. As the clock ticked closer to closing time – 10 o'clock – things began to wind down in the store. Patrons slowly made their way out, most ignoring Mako's half-hearted wishes for them to have a good night, and Mako spent this down time studying.

The evenings spent at Narook's typically went down like this and Mako couldn't have been any more satisfied with the hosting job he secured at the small Water Tribe noodlry a little over eight months ago.

As a criminology major whose intentions were to enroll in the Republic City Police Academy right after graduation, Mako spent most of his days buried in textbooks, studying why criminals did bad things. He found it to be all too interesting and was quite thankful to have found a job that didn't distract him too much from these interests. Mako's boss, Narook, was very supportive of Mako's goals and didn't seem to be bothered with his main host leaning over a textbook most of his shift.

It wasn't like there were _so _many customers that Mako had to remain on his feet all six hours of his shift.

"Another good shift, Mako?" Narook asked the 19-year-old who was wiping down the last set of tables for the night.

"Not bad," Mako answered, prompting the older man to grin widely at his best worker. Out of the four employees Narook had hired for his small restaurant, Mako seemed to be his favorite.

The boy was mature and reliable, not to mention a hard worker with a good ear. During his eight months working, Narook and Mako had learned a lot about one another due to the fact that Mako was always willing to stay the latest out of all his coworkers.

Those late nights allowed Narook a glimpse into Mako's life when he wasn't working. Mako had a younger brother who wished to enlist in the Armed Forces as soon as he graduated from high school; he was raised by his grandmother due to being orphaned at the age of eight; he planned to enroll in the Beifong Police Academy as soon as he secured his degree from the university.

In return, Mako too learned about his boss. Narook lost his wife and children in a fire over a decade ago; his recipe is a well-kept family secret from the Southern Water Tribe; Narook has a sister back home in the Water Tribe and a niece who started college at the University of Republic City that semester. As time passed, Narook began to talk more and more about his niece, Korra.

"She's kind of abrasive when you first meet her, but she grows on you really quickly," he promised.

Mako could tell that Narook's love for his only niece ran very deeply. From what Mako learned, Korra was an athlete who somehow managed to train a while polar bear dog. She was an only child who had always wanted a taste of the city life and was finally getting it. Nothing else in particular stood out to Mako until Narook approached him two months ago.

"Wait, what's wrong with Korra?" Mako asked, sweeping up broken piece of chopsticks left on the floor.

Narook sighed forlornly and sat down on the stool closest to Mako, "Her girlfriend just broke up with her. They'd been together since high school and my sister tells me that Korra isn't doing too well."

"That's…that really sucks."

Mako had never been one to console those who were mourning over something, especially the loss of a significant other. 'How can I even sympathize, I've never even dated before?' he thought bitterly to himself before turning back to Narook, "Well, I hope that she…um, recovers from this soon. She seems like the type that can bounce back quickly."

"I hope so," Narook said, "I mean, Korra really loved Asami. When Asami went away to school in the Earth Kingdom, that _crushed _her. It took a full three weeks for Korra to get over that, and that was when they were together! Imagine how long it'll take for her to get over it now!"

After that conversation, Mako had expected to hear news of Korra's recovery soon after, but none came. Two months later, Narook spoke again.

"I hired Korra to start working here," he told Mako. Mako stopped sweeping to look up at his boss.

"Really?"

"Really. She isn't getting any better and her mother is worried sick. We figured that this might be good for her."

Mako thought about it for a moment and nodded, "I mean, yeah, but don't you think you guys are moving too quickly. You said it yourself: she really loved…uh, Asami, was it?"

"Yes, but we also want to teach her how to stand up and move on her own," Narook answered. "She's going to start tomorrow. Mako, could you do me a favor when she comes here and…I don't know, make friends with her? Or try to at least? She's been alone in that apartment of hers since the breakup and I don't think she has anybody to talk to."

The teen stood at his full height, leaning his elbow against the broom, "Narook…I don't think that's such a good idea."

"Please, Mako! I'm begging you. I hate to see her hurting like this and maybe if she were to make friends with someone her age for a change, she'll start to feel better. Can you just do this one thing for me? Please?"

Mako was really good at reading people and by the way Narook looked at him, earnest and pleading, he could tell how important Korra was to him. He was vaguely reminded of the time his younger brother begged him to keep their fire ferret, Pabu. Mako knew he was going to cave.

Sighing, Mako nodded.

"I'll see what I can do."


	2. crazy

Korra was five minutes late to her first shift.

Remembering the promise he made to Narook the night before, Mako tried to banish the irritation from his mind, but with every passing second, he found it more difficult to remain calm and patient. Upset and depressed or not, when Korra took on this responsibility, she had agreed to work on a team with others who would depend on her. Mako already had that no good Hasook to deal with, he really didn't need another sucky co-worker to waste his shifts with.

Luckily for Mako, Wednesday afternoons weren't very busy at Narook's. Other than himself, Opal, the lone waitress working, and the noodle chef Tahno working in the back, there were only two customers quietly dining in the back.

'I wonder if I should tell Narook about this…' Mako thought.

The ringing of the bell brought the host out of his reverie, calling his attention to the front door.

Though Mako had never seen this girl before, he immediately recognized her by her bright blue eyes and crooked grin—they were exactly like Narook's.

"Hey, sorry I'm late! I called my uncle and explained the whole thing," Korra explained breathlessly, stopping before Mako to bend over and catch her breath. Mako took this moment to take in her appearance.

Narook's niece Korra was of average height with an impressively solid build; Mako didn't have to look very hard to see the gun show peeking out from her blue short-sleeved shirt. He absentmindedly wondered if living isolated on a block of ice at the bottom of the world only gave Korra the option of working out to pass the time. No, her uncle did mention that she was an athlete, attending the university on a scholarship.

What was it she played again? Air ball? Power disc? Mako himself wasn't particularly familiar with what sports the school offered since his free time was eaten up with studying or work. Scheduling enough time to work out was already hard enough for him, but to actually dedicate to a _sports team_?

Mako didn't have the time.

The young man raised his eyes to observe the rest of Korra's crouching figure. Korra was dark skinned, with messy brown hair tied into a high pony tail and a deep voice that still gave off a warmth that Narook had explained so clearly to Mako in one of their late night talks.

It was hard to believe that someone as strong looking as Korra fell into a depression that kept her isolated in her apartment for two months. 'Are you sure this is the same girl you're talking about, Narook?' Mako thought incredulously, shaking his head at the idea of her bawling her eyes out off in some dark corner.

"Um, is there something you wanna share with the class, cool guy?"

'Shit!' Mako's eyes flew open at the sudden revelation that he had been staring at Korra the entire time. Full-on staring. Indiscreetly staring. And caught at his staring. He fought back the heated flush that threatened to rise on his cheeks. He hadn't said anything to the girl yet and he was already submitting to the awkward nature that everyone agreed he had.

"Um, hey. I'm Mako."

"Hey," Korra's grin widened as she reached over to give Mako dap. Robotically, the 19-year-old extended his fist to tap against hers before taking it back.

'Is she serious? Is Narook fucking serious?'

"Uncle said I was gonna be working the front of the house today?"

"Yeah, I'll be training you today, so you can officially start as a hostess tomorrow. Let's get started."

—

When Narook said that Korra was abrasive, Mako didn't particularly think much of it. Just that she was a little assertive and a go-getter. As his time with Korra passed, he was starting to realize how grossly wrong he was.

"Korra, no, the trays go here, not there."

"I got it Mako, stop nagging me!"

"I'm only trying to help you!"

Mako had never raised his voice at a co-worker in his life. Sure, he'd be a little snarky and passive aggressive toward Hasook whenever he decided to be a no good no show, but with Korra?

"God Mako, you're like a fucking _helicopter host_!"

It was so _easy _to get pissed off at her.

"A what?"

"A helicopter host! As in you're always up my ass making sure I'm not fucking it up. I got this, back up!"

'Fucking psycho,' Mako snarled in his mind, rolling his eyes as Korra stomped away from him for the umpteenth time that afternoon. They were going into their fifth hour and he was already getting ready to grab the girl by the collar and toss her ass out onto the street where the garbage collector could claim its fill.

It was funny how Narook conveniently left out that his _precious _only niece was a _raging lunatic_. Mako huffed impatiently when he saw Korra forget to switch wash cloths _again _and bounded over to where she vigorously scrubbed the table. Wordlessly, Mako snatched the rag from her hands.

"Mako! What the hell are you—"

"Shut the hell up, woman! You forgot to switch the rags. _Again_."

Korra scowled at Mako before snatching her washcloth from him. Mako opened his mouth to chew the girl out again, only to be silenced when she threw the wet towel in his face.

Mako spluttered angrily, "Korra!"

Ignoring her coworker's positively _frightening _glare, Korra spat her tongue out and ripped the new washcloth from his clenched fist. When Mako refused to move from his spot next to her, Korra bumped her hip roughly against his.

"Get outta the way, jerk."

"_What_?!" Korra repeated the motion, this time a little harder, so that Mako would actually stumble backwards into an open chair. As Mako rose from his seat, he noted (with irritation and awe) that Korra was going to leave a bruise on his hip tomorrow morning. He wanted to tell Korra that she sucked at listening to people, but given the nature of their situation, he figured that his accusations would—no surprise—fall on deaf ears.

Grumbling angrily to himself, Mako stormed to the front of the house and finished cleaning there. He only had an hour left to deal with the fucking lunatic singing off key in the back of the restaurant.

It was the first time Mako regretted staying behind later than his other coworkers.

—

"So, how was Korra?" Narook asked the following afternoon.

Mako fought back his grimace and the natural response that was bubbling to his lips.

'How was Korra? Fucking awful. She's a menace. The woman is hardheaded and bossy and she_doesn't fucking listen_. She never learned to put shit back where they belonged and she's always. Fucking. Singing. Off key too. Not to mention there's this really fucking annoying mouth breathing thing she does when she's mad and she just really fucking drives me _crazy._'

Ignoring the internal monologue burning brightly in the pit of his stomach, Mako managed to turn all of his frustrations into a nonchalant shrug.

"Not bad."

"Oh, fuck off, Mako." Korra snapped from the front door.

It was almost as if his response were in sync with hers because as soon as he heard that _irritating, arrogant, stupid _voice, Mako's eyes rolled hard into the back of his head. Narook watched wide-eyed as Korra trudged past her Uncle and coworker, making sure to shove Mako out of her way before disappearing in the back.

"Not bad, huh?" Narook didn't even try to conceal his smirk. Mako let out an annoyed sigh and pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger; Narook clapped Mako on the back soundly and released a loud guffaw. Narook's eyes twinkled fondly as they drifted between Mako and the direction his niece had disappeared in.

"It's a good start. She usually does that if she likes you."

"What does that even mean?" Mako groaned.

Mako had agreed to listen to a weepy a girl complain about a breakup, not endure her childish shit. Hell, not even Mako was used to responding this passionately towards someone. The response she had effortlessly elicited from him in one encounter made Mako hate Korra a little bit more in the back of his mind.

"Hey Mako! Get your lazy ass back here, we gotta clock in!"

"God, shut the hell up Korra!" Mako snapped. He stopped his tirade in time to realize that he had just spoken to his boss' niece in such an unprofessional manner. Carefully, Mako glanced over to observe Narook's reaction.

The older man was grinning.

"Not bad at all, Mako. You guys will get along great!"

"Mako, if I have to you again…!"

Between Korra's incessant nagging and Narook's rather _irritating_ confidence in a blossoming friendship between the two, Mako knew deep inside that he wasn't going to be able to escape the wild shitstorm he knew as Korra for a while.

Silently, Mako resigned himself to his fate.


	3. semi-charmed life

Maybe Korra was just being mean for the hell of it.

"God, Korra! What did you just throw on me? Wha—_is that old fish broth?!_"

"Oh, suck it up. It's not like any girls are gonna try to hang around you anyway."

"You're a nightmare."

…or maybe there was something about tormenting Mako that made Korra feel just a little better about this whole 'Asami' situation. The 18-year-old watched with glee as her coworker angrily stormed to the restroom to clean up the fish broth she had unceremoniously squirted at his apron. It wasn't like she hadn't done anything worse before to Mako, that stiff.

If there was one thing Korra couldn't stand, it was a know-it-all.

Actually, it was a know-it-all who walked around with a chip on their shoulder. God, that kind of person pissed Korra off _so _much, so it was naturally easy for her to want to annoy Mako every opportunity she got.

It was certainly a lot easier than thinking of _her_.

The grin on Korra's face faded as a sharp pain rippled over her body, effectively stunning her. The gaping hole—which remained as wide and fresh as the day Asami had left—throbbed painfully. Korra ignored the worried looks she had received from Opal the waitress and quietly excused herself to the restaurant where she could compose herself. She quickly shut the door behind her and locked it, pressing her back against the wooden surface.

'Deep breaths, deep breaths,' Korra repeated to herself. She breathed in and out deeply, an exercise she had been practicing for the past two months; she tried her best to ignore the hot stinging sensation in her eyes, but she knew she wasn't going to hold up for much longer.

Korra had tried so hard to not cry for the past two months, and with each passing day, resistance was becoming increasingly difficult.

It didn't help much that the bathroom were decorated with Fire lilies, Asami's favorite flowers, or that the walls were a bright jade with purple accents—what kind of business did Narook even have using _green _in a Water Tribe themed restaurant? Korra silently cursed her uncle as her eyes screwed shut. Unbidden memories washed over her paralyzed form.

_'Korra, this isn't working between us.' It was three days from their fourth year together and Korra couldn't believe what she was hearing over the phone. A cold sweat broke on her forehead as she began to comprehend what Asami was saying._

_Her heart throbbed at the thought of being without Asami._

_'Asami, please. We can make this work. If we just try—'_

_'We've been trying for the past nine months, Korra. We're holding each other back; it's better this way…'_

_Korra couldn't believe what was happening._

_She hadn't fallen in love with Asami because it was convenient. It was because it was so easy to fall for her._

_She recounted the first time she had seen Asami in high school; the girl was a year ahead of Korra, but it only took Korra one look. That was it. One glance at Asami Sato walking to her next class and Korra was a goner._

_Perhaps it was the way her dark tresses flowed down her back or the way her green eyes sparkled or even the way her dark lips would always be curved into a kind smile, brightly greeting everyone she saw—whatever it was about Asami, Korra had decided to slip a letter into her shoebox that day during lunch._

_And the rest was history._

_Until now._

_Korra was sweating, her palms were cold and clammy, her heart was beating in an irregular, disjointed rhythm—she could feel something ripping deep inside._

_'It's better this way, Korra.'_

_The 18-year-old hadn't even thought that this would happen to her. Being jilted by someone you were so deeply in love with just didn't happen to Korra. No, anybody else except her. She thought that Asami was it._

_Terrified blue eyes flew to the small bedside table where a photo of Korra and Asami posing inside silly cutouts at her hometown's Glacier Spirits Festival stood. Her heart quivered painfully as she lowered her gaze to the hand-carved choker lying beneath the picture frame._

_Korra had planned to give it to Asami when they met for the winter break…_

_'I-If that's what you really want, Asami.'_

_…but now she wasn't going to get that opportunity, Korra thought as her fingers, cold and numb, reached up to hit the 'end' button._

_'It is. Thank you for the best three years I could have ever asked for. Good-bye, Korra.'_

_Korra terminated the call without responding._

A pounding at the door brought Korra back to the present. The throbbing in Korra's chest hadn't stopped and she could feel another wave of fresh tears threatening to run down her face.

She blinked multiple times to stop it, but to no avail.

The pounding on the door didn't stop.

"Korra, are you in there?"

'That shithead, Mako,' Korra realized at last and, with a new sense of purpose successfully halting her desire to cry into next week, Korra whipped around, lifted the bolt, and ripped open the door.

"_What_?" the girl snarled. To his credit, Mako didn't bristle at Korra's attitude. Korra bitterly noted that he must have been expecting this reaction. Mako rolled his eyes at Korra's theatrics and brushed off her hostility.

"I was checking to make sure you didn't fall into the toilet. Now c'mon, we gotta go clear the vacated tables."

"Do it yourself, you dick."

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me! Do it yourself!" she snapped, her shouts echoing through the back of the house. Mako heard the kitchen door crack open, no doubt the kitchen boys wanting to know what the hullabaloo was about.

Mako pinched the bridge of his nose with his thumb and forefinger, a gesture he had picked up after years of dealing with his baby brother, Bolin. Taking a deep breath, Mako squared his shoulders to face Narook's niece.

"Korra, when you were hired here, you agreed to work on a team. We need you to contribute to the team now, otherwise we won't be running the best we can."

"I don't fucking care. Leave me alone."

"Korra—"

"Shut the fuck up, Mako. God, why do you have to talk to me like I'm five years old? You're always walking around with this air of entitlement and it _pisses me off_; who do you think you are? Acting as if you have a chip on your shoulder. I could care less about anybody on this team. I only came here because my uncle asked me to. That's it, so please go fucking take your know-it-all bullshit and throw yourself out in front of a bus."

"You know what?" Mako said angrily, backing away from his shaking coworker, "I'll just go do that. You're welcome to join us when you're finished with your pity party. I don't know what the hell is going on with you right now, but there _are _people counting on you. And if you don't want to help out, _then fucking go home_. You're just taking up space. Later."

Korra watched as Mako walked away, his heavy footsteps echoing behind him as he entered the dining hall. For once, she had nothing to say. The only thing that remained in Mako's wake was a bitterness that beckoned a stream of tears to cascade down her face. Korra hastily swiped away the moisture before running out the back door. She vaguely heard the shutting of the kitchen door before she passed it.

She welcomed the cool evening air with open arms.

Republic City was a light show at night. From the back parking lot, Korra could see how the skyscrapers cast a bright glow against the rippling waters of Yue Bay. It sparkled and shimmered underneath the moonlight. In the distance, Korra could make out the isolated Buddhist monastery on Air Temple Island and, on the other side of the bay, the Avatar Aang memorial.

The smell of sea and salt filled Korra's senses and, for the first time in weeks, she longed to be home. It should be spring around this time and her village would be expecting the arrival of otter-penguin pups for the annual festival. She remembered her childhood days on that block of ice at the bottom of the world; her mornings were filled with penguin sledding with the kids from the village and, in the afternoon, Korra would join her father on fishing trips that would run into the late evening.

Never would Korra ever think that she would long for that simplistic life again.

"If you stay out here for much longer, you're going to catch a cold."

Korra scoffed at her uncle and shook her head, "Uncle, please. You know very well that this weather is child's play compared to home."

Narook's chuckles made Korra wish to see her parents again.

"Can I sit?"

She shrugged, "It's your restaurant. I guess you wanna talk to me about ripping Mako a new one?"

Taking her uncle's silence as admission, Korra groaned, "Uncle, why would you hire someone like him? He's so _annoying!_"

"Who, Mako? No! He's a good guy, you just gotta get to know him. He's not entirely comfortable dealing with strangers, let alone crazy Water Tribe women."

"Uncle!"

The uncle and niece laughed together before falling into a companionable silence. They remained quiet as they absorbed the sights and sounds of the city. The sound of Yue bay's tides breaking against the shore, the sight of RC Police airships sailing above Kyoshi Bridge, the sounds of little children playing power disc in the streets and someone yelling out "Satomobile" as a car approached their street game. Korra grinned as she listened to the pitter patter of their feet hitting the pavement, pausing to allow the car to pass before resuming the game. Korra folded her arms over her bent knees and rested her chin on top.

"Uncle, is he really as good a guy as you say? That Mako?"

"He's a very reliable person," Narook answered without missing a beat, "I think he'd be able to sympathize with what you're going through right now."

"What, he had a girlfriend who left him?" Korra scoffed, "With that know-it-all attitude, it's not really a surprise."

"No, honey, he knows about _loss_." Narook replied softly, prompting the girl to look up at her uncle quizzically. Narook smiled sadly at Korra before continuing.

"Mako grew up without parents. They died when he and his brother were young, and he had to take care of himself and his brother until the rest of their family found them."

"How long did that take?"

Narook rubbed his chin thoughtfully, "Well, they died when he was eight and his grandmother took over when he was 14…so I'd imagine that it was a while. He only recently moved back here with his brother, so it's just them again."

Eight years old. Korra thought about the time she was eight and she had gotten a fishing hook stuck in her thumb. Luckily, her mother was there to remove the obstruction and treat it. But Mako? Had that been him, he would have been walking around with a fishing hook in his thumb for a while. Even if he was a jerk, Korra couldn't shake the sympathy she was starting to feel.

"What about their family?"

"They live in the Earth Kingdom. Mako takes his brother to see them every summer. He actually just got back from visiting them a few weeks ago. He worked overtime for three months to save up enough for both himself and his brother whilepaying for school. You know how expensive that school of yours is."

"And he doesn't have any other kind of help?" Korra asked, surprised.

The wizened smile that Narook gave Korra made her realize what he was getting at. _Oh_. 'He's always preaching about teamwork because he's always doing all the work,' she thought. 'And Uncle was saying that he knows about…loss…even if she isn't _dead_.'

Korra thought about the possibility of anybody that she loved—her mother, father, her polar bear dog, Naga, Narook…_Asami_—not being on this earth anymore, and was overwhelmed by the force of pain that rippled over the gaping hole in her chest. The sensation knocked her over like a tidal wave, leaving her to drown in the anguish of physically _losing _someone that she loved.

She took a few moments to take deep breaths and banished the notion from her mind, emerging from the depths of her thoughts with a newfound respect for Mako.

"Just try to get along with Mako," Narook said, clapping a warm hand against Korra's shoulder, "I'm sure you'll come to like him with time."

"I wouldn't count on that," she grumbled, ignoring Narook's pointed look directed towards her. Clearing her throat, Korra stood and dusted off her apron, "but I'll try."

When Korra reentered the restaurant, she saw Mako studying at the register.

Taking a closer look at him, she could see the purple bruises forming underneath his eyes. He yawned behind a closed fist before flipping the page.

There was something about _seeing _him work hard and hearing about his difficult upbringing that made Korra suddenly…want to be nice to him. Or at least try, he wasn't going to make her feel sorry for him, Korra stubbornly stated. Swallowing her pride, Korra bounced up to her unsuspecting coworker, snatched the dishrag that rested underneath his elbow and bumped his hip with hers.

"Get outta the way. I'm trying to wipe down the counters."

Mako jumped with a yelp, quickly regaining his composure when he realized who it was. He raised a brow at her sudden willingness to help but quickly dismissed his skepticism when he saw her apologetic smile.

Unable to resist the urge to return the gesture, Mako rolled his eyes and threw another towel at Korra.

"Well, don't let me get in the way of you working hard—"

"Mako?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up and study."

"Right."


	4. tears dry on their own

"Hi ladies, welcome to Narook's. Table for five?"

"Oh yes, please." Korra raised a brow at the gaggle of giggling girls making goo-goo eyes at her oblivious coworker. Grabbing five menus, Mako nodded curtly to the customers and led them to a table in the center of the restaurant. Korra leaned closer to get a better listen since the girls appeared to be speaking to Mako.

"So, what's your name?"

"It's Mako."

"Mako!" the girls parroted flirtatiously; Korra actually wondered if she should bring over a pitcher of water to quench all the _thirst _she saw. She watched wide-eyed as Mako continued to entertain their questions. She was only able to take her attention away from the group when someone dropped another set of menus next to her.

"This is a normal thing, y'know." Opal appeared beside Korra, tying the strings of her apron into place. "For some reason, girls are always in to him, even though Mako's a mess when it comes to women."

"He is? No surprise there." Mako having a _girlfriend _wasn't something that Korra could really imagine. 'She'd have to be someone equally as stiff, if not more,' she thought to herself.

Opal laughed, "He is! My boyfriend, Mako's little brother, always mentions it whenever he can. If Bolin was here…" the girl shook her head amusedly. "…Mako's a good guy, he just…he just needs some socialization with girls. He's doing well with you right now, so there's something. Although, I'm not too sure if I can count squirting fish broth at him as 'socialization.'"

"He's gotta start somewhere," Korra replied smugly, her smirk sending Opal into another fit of laughter.

"So, do you have a girlfriend, Mako?"

"Ah…no, I don't."

Opal and Korra ducked behind the register, holding in their laughter at Mako's obvious discomfort at the question. Somewhere in the back of her mind, Korra could imagine Narook scolding her for laughing at his expense, especially after she had promised to be nicer to him.

Harmless teasing wasn't exactly malicious.

"Should we save him?" Opal whispered.

"He's been hanging there for long enough," Korra allowed. "Besides, that's Hasook's section and he probably won't be out for another two or three minutes."

"Right," Opal agreed before calling Mako back to the register.

Thankfully, Mako bowed before the guests—all flushed pink and batted their lashes suggestively—and made a beeline for Opal and Korra. He took one look at their smug expressions and scoffed, turning away from them. He reached out for a pen and scribbled random characters in a blank piece of receipt tape. Korra and Opal grinned at each other before scuffling over to Mako, who was desperately trying to avoid their silent questions.

Korra waited another moment before reaching over to place a firm hand on Mako's shoulder, "Hey Makoooo…"

"What?!" he snapped.

"I didn't know there were so many people standing in line to get a piece."

"A piece of what?" Korra quite enjoyed the way her coworker's face pinched up distastefully. It made her want to send him back to serve those girls since Hasook still hadn't helped them yet.

"Oh, I think you know what."

"I don't though."

"Korra, forget about it. He doesn't know what you're talking about." Opal interjected, patting her boyfriend's brother's shoulder. Mako glanced over at Opal and rolled his eyes, "Don't you have dishes to wash or something, Opal? God."

"Aw, don't be like that, Mako!" Korra chided. "Opal's a waitress, you dingus. And besides, why wash dishes when we can watch you dish out some noodles to those girls, _Mako-style_?"

"If you ever say that again, I will drown you."

"Oh, come _on_! You can't tell me that you didn't see that they were totally scoping you out!"

Mako huffed and scribbled harder against the receipt tape, trying to block out the irritating _leer_that Korra was giving him. To Korra, this whole thing was great; there were girls who were interested in that stick in the mud Mako and _he didn't even realize it_. Her wicked grin widened when she saw the tips of his ears reddening.

"They were not," Mako grumbled.

"God, Mako, could you be any more oblivious? I bet you haven't even kissed a girl, that's why you're so stupid about this!"

"I have so!"

"Your grandma doesn't count, cool guy!"

"…"

Opal watched in amusement as Narook's niece went at it with Bolin's stuffy older brother. She'd never seen Mako act like this before and, quite frankly, it was refreshing to see him get flustered; it made him more personable, Opal thought. 'Perhaps, this arrangement is good for him,' she thought to herself, making a mental note to tell Bolin about this after her shift. Her boyfriend would be _ecstatic _at the news that Mako was getting along with someone so well.

It's been a while since they actually made real friends.

"Okay guys, well, I'm gonna go serve that table!" Opal called over the bickering pair, who didn't so much as acknowledge her departure.

Opal's smile was a little brighter than usual that evening.

—

"I'll sweep the front of the house and you wipe down all the tables," Mako said to Korra three hours later. Stifling a yawn behind her hand, Korra nodded her assent and got to work.

She hadn't been working for her uncle for very long and she was already falling into a routine that she could get used to. As Korra scrubbed the old wooden tables clean, she recounted the past two months before her mother called, telling her that Narook was going to hire her for a bit.

She'd go to class; Go to practices and games; Study only the night before an exam, but in her free time? Nothing. Korra remembered the sleepless nights that she spent curled up on her bed, paralyzed by the crippling heartache that had dragged her into an inescapable void. She remembered rolling over, thoughts filled only of Asami, and completely surrendering to the misery that followed.

It didn't help her much that whenever she left her apartment, she would carry the betrothal necklace she had planned to give to Asami; it added extra unnecessary weight to both her heart and her pockets. Out of habit, Korra reached into her pocket to seize the necklace, but was horrified to see that she came up empty-handed.

'Wait…I _know _I brought it with me,' she thought to herself, stuffing her hands into both pockets this time, shaking them for good measure. Only the sound of fabric rustling was registered; a panic came over the young girl and she threw her rag on the table, the task Mako had given her beforehand completely forgotten.

On her hands and knees, Korra crawled around the restaurant, her eyes peeled open for the small jeweled necklace. If she lost it…

'Well, it'd just mean that I'd lost Asami as well, now wouldn't it?' Korra thought bitterly, 'but that's already happened, so what's the fucking point of—'

"Is that a betrothal necklace?"

She could have gotten whiplash from how fast she turned towards the door. There, resting in the palm of Mako's hand was Asami's betrothal necklace. Korra lunged for it and snatched it out of Mako's hands without so much as a warning.

"Don't touch it, it's mine!" the words tumbled out of her mouth without her consent.

Mako observed the somewhat haunted expression on Korra's face, but decided not to comment. Her defensiveness over that necklace could only lead him to one conclusion and it was the one detail that Narook had never provided him with: Korra really was _that _serious about her ex-girlfriend.

He never could really understand love; after all, he'd never even kissed a girl before. His years on the street, working to support both Bolin and himself, did an excellent job at ensuring that Mako would never get the interest to emotionally invest in someone. Korra's current predicament was just another piece of evidence to confirm to him that falling in love was nothing but trouble.

You give everything you got and hope that it works out, and if it doesn't, you're left with nothing. You are a shadow of who you once were and Mako honestly did not have the time or patience to deal with it.

Korra didn't like the way Mako was staring at her.

She could feel him _judging _her and there was something in his eyes that made her want to stuff his head in the toilet around back. She clutched the necklace closer to her heart—it was throbbing again—and snarled at her coworker.

"What the fuck are you looking at?"

'Ah, she's mad again,' Mako realized, 'I wonder why?'

He huffed to himself and shook his head, continuing his sweeping; however, the action only seemed to fuel Korra's anger. She stuffed the necklace in her pocket and approached Mako, her intentions made clear to the 19-year-old. He stopped sweeping.

"I can feel you judging me," Korra hissed lowly.

"I'm not."

"Don't lie to me."

"Korra, I think you're overreacting…"

"Don't patronize me!" she burst, slapping the broom from his hands. It clattered against the ground; the sound rang in Mako's ears and Korra got closer to him.

Korra was fury was growing. How _dare _this jerk attempt to trivialize the situation? She was seeing red and nothing was helping to calm her down. She'd seen that same look before; from her teachers, her team mates, sometimes even her own parents had given her that same pitiful expression. Korra was so tired of it.

She didn't need anyone to look at her as if she were a wounded animal.

"Don't patronize me, Mako," she repeated again, this time lower.

'Is this really happening right now?' Mako thought to himself. Him, patronizing Korra? 'The one time I space out in the wrong place at the wrong time and I have someone ready to beat me up. It's so fucking presumptuous.'

"I wasn't," Mako snapped, his frustrations with Korra's moodiness taking over, "not everything is about you, Korra! Am I not allowed to think to myself?"

"No, you aren't, because when you do, you wind up judging people without caring about what they've been through, you jerk!" Korra replied nastily, "I can _see_, you know!"

"Not very well."

"Oh, fuck off."

Mako couldn't believe how quickly they regressed back to square one; however, he figured that part of that was his fault since he didn't keep his mouth shut in the first place. He could tell that if this escalates any further, Korra was most likely going to attack him. The best course of action would be to separate since neither were thinking clearly at the moment.

He sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, "Look, neither of us are thinking straight right now. Do you wanna go home early?"

Korra didn't need to be offered her escape twice. She quickly grabbed her coat and brushed past Mako, slamming the front door behind her. Mako rolled his eyes hard into the back of his head before finishing up his work. The teen remained focused on the tasks set before him that he didn't even acknowledge when his younger brother entered the restaurant.

"So, Opal is telling me something about you having a new BFF? Bro, I'm kind of hurt you didn't mention this before."

"I don't know who the hell Opal is talking about, but I'm sure she's dead wrong anyway."

"My Opal?" Bolin asked incredulously, "_Never_! She was telling me about how Korra was teasing you for something about _dishing out noodles Mako-style_ and—"

"Why are you here, Bolin?"

"I wanted to meet Korra myself!" the 17-year-old answered brightly. Emerald eyes zipped around the empty restaurant, hoping to catch a glimpse of his brother's newest coworker. "Where is she?"

"Home. She left early."

"Aw, why?"

"Because Korra likes to blow everything out of proportion," Mako gritted out between clenched teeth, anger coursing through his veins again, "I help her find the betrothal necklace she made for her ex-girlfriend and then she gets angry at me because she thinks I'm _judging _her for hanging onto something that's obviously hurt her very badly. God, what the hell is the point of carrying it around if you're just going to hurt in the end?"

Bolin observed his brother's reaction very carefully. Opal was right. It was unlike Mako to invest_this _much raw emotion in someone he had just met before and the fact that he was doing it now made Bolin hopeful of the future. Maybe Mako would find a friend in this Korra, even if Korra needed his help right now and wasn't willing to accept it at the moment.

"Y'know, bro, sometimes all you need to know is that she's hurting," Bolin perched himself on the stool next to his brother, gauging Mako's reaction as he spoke, "You may not understand what Korra's going through, but it's important that you're there to listen to her. _Without _making any judgments because, face it bro, you do have a bad habit of judging."

"What? No, I don't!"

"…" Bolin pointedly looked at Mako, who sighed in resignation.

"Maybe I do, but it was the only thing that got us by all this time."

"Yeah, but counseling someone through their relationship problems doesn't really call for cold, hard street smarts. You gotta be more sensitive towards her, bro. Narook wanted you to help her right? That's how you do it 'coz a broken heart really sucks."

"So, I've heard." Mako grumbled. Bolin laughed and punched his brother's arm affectionately.

"You'll get it."

"I hope so."

—

The next day, Mako found Korra eating lunch outside in one of the university's main courtyards. Despite autumn closing in on Republic City, it was still warm enough for the students to enjoy their lunches outside. Mako wasn't surprised to find that Korra was alone, reading out of a second-hand textbook while picking the sashimi off the tops of her sushi.

Remembering Bolin's words to him the night before, Mako decided that now was as good as any to make an attempt at clearing the air with Korra.

Taking one last deep breath, he stood up straight, squared his shoulders, and strode towards Korra. She didn't seem angry at all when she noticed him standing in front of her. Instead, bright blue eyes ran over his figure, almost as if she were sizing him up.

"Can I sit?"

Korra thought briefly about it before nodding, scooting over to give Mako some room. Nobody seemed to notice the university's resident lone wolves actually sitting together during lunch. Mako was thankful for the lack of an audience. He turned to Korra.

"I'm sorry about yesterday," Korra blurted out before Mako could even say anything. He frowned.

"Sorry? For what?"

"I snapped on you when it wasn't your fault," she explained, "I shouldn't have acted so defensively and I'm sorry for being so rude to you."

It was the first time she had ever apologized to him. Mako decided to celebrate the momentous occasion by returning the same sentiments to her. It wasn't quite as difficult now that Korra went first.

"Well, I was being insensitive towards you and I know it's been a rough few months for you, so I'm sorry if I made you feel like I was trivializing your feelings. I really didn't mean it."

"I know you didn't," Korra replied, beaming, "but thank you for apologizing anyway. You know, with how I've been recently, I am really impressed with how you've been handling everything."

"What do you mean?"

"I know I can be a pain in the ass," Korra admitted freely, laughing at the look of utter shock pass over Mako's face. "But I think it's pretty cool how you've been able to keep up with me, Mako."

"Keep up?"

"Yeah, like, deal with me," Mako noticed the smugness in Korra's face melt into a very bittersweet type of sorrow. For a moment, Mako was able to catch just a glimpse of the sorrows Narook had told him of before. After weeks of arguing and being tossed over and over into the pit of fire, Mako was starting to see something that he never thought Korra would reveal. She laughed bitterly, "The last person to ever deal with me was…"

She paused, hesitant to whether or not she should even mention the unspoken name resting on her quivering lips. Mako waited patiently.

"The last person to ever with me so well was very important me," Korra whispered after a few beats. When Mako glanced over to look at Korra, he wasn't surprised to see the girl holding the most heartbreaking expression he had ever seen. Looking at how her eyebrows drew up together, with her eyes wide with unshed tears—it made Mako feel the need to actually try to comfort her. He felt a new kind of frustration when he realized that there was not much he could say to help mend a brokenheart; he had seen it way too many times with his younger brother and knew that these things passed with time.

Mako cleared his throat, "You know, Korra. If you ever need to talk about it, I'll listen to you."

Mako wasn't her best friend.

But Korra could definitely see him becoming one just because he said that he would listen to her when she was ready. This whole time, her family had been trying their best to force her out of this_phase_—if you could even call it that—and now, there was someone who was willing to wait for her for when she was ready to shed those sorrows. The fact that there was someone who was waiting made her as if she were one step closer to letting Asami go. A pleasant warmth erupted in the pit of Korra's stomach, soothing any twisting pain that she had felt over the past two months. She didn't recall the last time she had ever felt so…actually, she didn't recall the last time she had felt anything other than pain. Korra welcomed this new feeling that Mako had brought to her.

Reaching over to take his hand in hers—Korra was momentarily mesmerized by how easily her hand disappeared into his warm grasp—she squeezed gratefully.

"I'll be looking forward to that day. Thank you, Mako.


	5. never fully dressed without a smile

As the next few months passed by, Mako and Korra spent more time together, both at work and at school. Narook was pleased to see that his niece was recovering well, now that she had a new friend who she liked to spend every waking minute with if she wasn't studying or at practice. Mako himself adjusted to Korra's near constant presence and, though he'd rather drown than admit it out loud, he actually liked having Korra around.

"Ancient Tibetan literature?" Mako asked Korra as she plopped down next to him at lunch. The girl had unceremoniously chucked an old, dusty textbook onto the table; the plastic bottles littering the tabletop noisily clattered from the disturbance. Korra threw herself down with a groan.

"Yeah, Tenzin's exam is going to _destroy _me. How am I going to get through _nine _chapters of Tibetan text by next class? That's, like, the entire weekend!"

"That is the entire weekend, dummy."

"Oh, shut up. What you got there? More seaweed noodles from the kitchen?" Korra leaned over and picked a strand up from Mako's plate before dropping it in her mouth, savoring its salty taste. It tasted just like her mother's. "You keep eating this stuff, you're gonna turn green or something."

"What? I didn't have time to pack lunch this morning," Mako sniffed. "And besides, _you _don't complain whenever you come to steal half of my noodles, so there."

"So there?'

"Yeah."

Korra shook her head at Mako before leaning over to snatch the chopsticks in his hand, pleased to see that he didn't even try to stop her. The boy sighed in acceptance when Korra plucked more strands of the green noodles off of the plate and shoveled them in her mouth without regards to the disgusted looks she was getting from bypassers. She didn't particularly care since her lack of table manners didn't seem to bother Mako.

When she asked him about it last week, he ambiguously said, "I raised my brother. You're fine."

Korra had heard quite a bit about Mako's little brother, Bolin. From the stories she's heard from both Mako and Opal, he sounded like someone she could really get along with. It was comments like these that made Korra what kind of person had Mako raised. 'If he's anything like Mako himself then he shouldn't be bad.' Quickly glancing over to her side, she noticed Mako spacing out on her face _again_. She reached for more food.

"So, what are you doing after classes?" Korra questioned, mouth still full of noodles. Day old dragon sauce dribbled down her face, but she made no move to dab her face. 'So fucking typical,' Mako thought; he was reminded once more of Bolin whose table manners were, believe or not,_worse _than Korra's. Mako sighed, quickly offering his friend a napkin. Korra accepted it and messily thanked Mako, unapologetically spitting her lunch in his direction. Mako recoiled from the morsels flying onto his arm before returning to her question.

"Uh, I have to go get a birthday present for Bo. It's tomorrow and I've been putting it off all week because of my exams; I don't even know what to get him!"

Korra finished slurping up the last bit of noodle and set down her chopsticks. Mako watched Korra bring her fingers up to stroke her chin thoughtfully; he wondered if she had picked up that habit from spending so much time with her Tibetan Lit professor, Tenzin. Mako had seen Professor Tenzin strolling the grounds of the university once or twice before; both times, he recalled the stern man's hands absentmindedly stroking his beard.

Mako broke away from his thoughts of Korra's stuffy lit professor when he heard the girl gasp, her hands flying to his forearms to attract his attention. If there was something that Korra constantly reiterated to Mako, it was her physical strength. The grip she had on his arms was another reminder that she tamed a wild _polar bear dog_. He winced.

"What?"

"Let's go get something for him after class! Just you and me!" Korra said, her eyes brightly lit at her proposal.

Mako took the suggestion and thought about it. It wasn't a bad idea. Bolin's birthday was tomorrow and he _still _didn't know what to get his baby brother. Not to mention that two heads were always better than one; Korra would definitely be able to give Mako some good ideas. Not to mention this was an opportunity for Mako to spend time with Korra's company, but he quickly brushed off this pro, as he _really _had to get something by tomorrow.

"Alright. Let's go."

—

Korra hadn't lived in Republic City for very long. In fact, she had just gotten there around the time of the break up, and she was so far gone in her own post-break up blues that she never bothered to explore the city. Korra patted herself on the back for the brilliant idea as she and Mako approached the Republic City mall.

It was a chilly November afternoon, and the mall was full of shoppers who were preparing for the upcoming New Moon festival. Walkways were decked in sparkling blue and silver trimmings, illuminated by a fleet of lanterns arranged along the sides of the main pathway. Snowflakes dangled from the ceiling; they danced in the sea of colors projected onto the ceiling.

Korra watched the little children play underneath the color; she was reminded of the little children back home in the village. The village would gather before the chief's home—her home—and engage in the festivities underneath the darkened moon. As a child, Korra enjoyed playing with Naga underneath the celestial lights; there was an ancient tale the elders told every year about the source of lights being from spirits crossing over into the physical world from the spirit world.

Korra wondered if Republic City celebrated the holiday for the same tale; she'd have to ask Mako, but for now…

"Alright City Boy, where should we go first? I've never been here, so you gotta lead the way."

"You've never been here before?" Mako wasn't completely surprised by Korra's admission. After all, she had been holed up in her apartment since that summer. He figured he'd have to make this trip count since it was her very first.

"Nope. Actually, I haven't had a good look around the city since I've gotten here," Korra answered, leaning over to read a posted map. She had never understood the appeal of shopping before, but when you grow up in a place where shopping malls and convenience stores aren't exactly at the next glacier on your left, it wasn't abnormal for Korra to develop apathy towards shopping in general. It was already a struggling going grocery shopping every week.

Mako watched Korra memorizing the old map in the front of the building. There was something…light about how she currently carried herself. It was nothing like the pathetic sad shell of a person he had met all those months ago or that angry, heartbroken woman who nearly beat him into a bloody pulp for merely _looking _at her the wrong way. If this was how Korra was before Asami left, then Mako had to admit: she was pretty decent.

"Hey Mako, what about this place?" Korra pointed to a tiny boutique that sat on the second floor. Mako knew that place very well; the owner of that boutique was a nice old man who lives next door to Mako and Bolin. Whenever Mako stopped downtown to pick up Bolin's favorite dumplings, he would always drop some off for his neighbor and his young granddaughter who would be coloring quietly behind the register.

Mako turned Korra's lopsided grin with a small smile, nodding in agreement.

He said, "Okay, but can we stop somewhere before we do?"

—

"I don't know why you insisted on picking up dumplings, Mako." Korra commented as they climbed the stairs onto the second floor, "We can eat after we shop."

Mako shook his head and clutched the warm bag close against his chest, "It's not for me. And look, we're there."

The boutique Korra had picked out was a tiny little thing, tucked away in a dusty corner. As the pair approached the store, Korra vaguely wondered how it was able to survive this whole time.

"How long has this shop been around?" she asked casually. Mako paused to count the years before answering with a nonchalant shrug.

"No idea. It's been here since before I was born, so that should clue you in. Bolin always liked to come here when we were kids."

"What do they sell?"

"All sorts of things, but you'll see for yourself. C'mon."

The inside of the store was just as unimpressive as the outside. There were mostly shelves filled with miscellaneous nick nacks that could charm the pants off of any tourist. Korra suspected the store thrived during the holiday seasons, as Republic City was a vacation hot spot for country folk. As she and Mako went deeper into the little store, she noticed a little girl, no older than six, coloring behind a glass counter.

"Tuyen?"

Large brown eyes turned up, glittering with happiness as she drank in the sight of Mako. When he held up the bag of dumplings and shook it, Korra finally understood why he wanted to get it first.

Korra was speechless as she watched the little girl stand and bolt over to Mako, throwing herself in stick-in-the-mud Mako's open arms. A warmth pooled into Korra's stomach as the touching scene unfolded before her very eyes.

"Mako, you're back! I missed you!"

"How are you, Tuyen?"

"Good!" she untangled herself from Mako, excitement still visible in her eyes. Korra watched in awe as the little girl bounced up and down, relaying to Mako every single detail he had missed out on since the last time they had seen one another. Tuyen vaguely reminded Korra of Professor Tenzin's daughter, Ikki, who shared the same kind of excitable energy. It was very entertaining for her to see how Mako interacted with small children.

It was also very surprising how well he was doing.

It took Tuyen a few minutes to calm down, and it was only after she was able to take a few deep breaths that she was able to notice Korra standing behind Mako's crouched form. Her mouth formed an 'o' as she observed Korra.

"Mako, who's this?"

"Tuyen, this is my friend, Korra. Korra, this is Tuyen. Her grandpa owns this shop." Mako gently nudged the little girl closer to his friend—yes, that's what they were now, wasn't it?—and offered Tuyen an encouraging smile. It was clear to Korra that the little girl was shy around strangers.

"Hi, Tuyen! I'm Korra!"

Mako watched as Korra bent down to Tuyen's eye level. Her sudden movement had startled the little girl, but the friendliness in Korra's introduction had stopped her from recoiling. Tuyen's grandfather, Toza, had always told Mako of her weariness of strangers. It wasn't something that was uncommon in city kids since you were pretty much required to question everyone's motives.

However, there was something in Korra's expression that quickly put her at ease. A giggle escaped from Tuyen's face as she took Korra's outstretched hand in hers.

"Hi Korra! You're really pretty!"

Mako found himself enjoying the exchange between Korra and Tuyen. He hadn't expected Korra to be good dealing with children and this was just one more thing that made her little just the tiniest bit more amazing in his eyes. Bit by bit, Korra was revealing herself to him and Mako found himself enjoying these tidbits of her personality.

Korra was smart, funny, and perhaps she was just the tiniest bit _pretty_, but Mako didn't really focus on that bit. That was an invitation for something disastrous.

"So, are you Mako's girlfriend?" Tuyen asked innocently, ignoring the horrified expression that broke across Mako's face. Embarrassment took form in a pink flush that filled Mako's cheeks. It reached the tips of his ears and he cursed himself for being so obvious. The little girl laughed at his expression.

"Tuyen!"

"What?" she asked, "She's a pretty girl. I never see you around pretty girls. Bo said you think girls have _cooties_, so Korra must be your girlf—-"

"Okay, well speaking of Bo, Korra and I are looking for a present for his birthday." Mako interrupted, having heard enough of this conversation, "Can you help us?"

The suggestion seemed to distract the girl enough.

She nodded enthusiastically before disappearing into the back room, leaving Mako and Korra to themselves. God, this was so embarrassing. Mako peeked to his side to see if Korra was embarrassed by Tuyen's question, but to his relief, she still maintained the same serene expression she held when chatting with Toza's granddaughter.

Korra chuckled and punched Mako's arm, "It's fine, Mako. She's a little kid. And, technically, I would be a girl friend since I am a girl and a friend."

"Oh, shut up," he grumbled miserably, prompting Korra to snicker more at his expense.

When Tuyen finally reappeared, she held out a small locket and dropped it in the palm of Mako's hand. He turned it over in his palm and observed the object carefully. Tuyen explained.

"I saw Bo carrying this old photo a while back. If he's gonna carry it around, it should be in a locket. Grandpa said Bo was looking at this the last time he was here."

"Where's your grandpa now?" Mako asked.

"I'm comin'! Mako, did Tuyen give you that locket?"

"Why don't you trust me, grandpa?"

Toza came out of the back room and ruffled his granddaughter's dark locks before reaching over to shake Mako's hand firmly. Mako held the locket up for Toza to see. Pale blue eyes ran over the small locket, checking to make sure it was the right one. He nodded, "Yep, that's the one he was lookin' at. I figured it's to hold that photo y'all carry around. Y'know, since he's trying to enlist in the UR Forces."

Mako's smile faltered.

Bolin entering the military after high school was a sensitive topic for him. He had spent so long protecting his brother from the dangers of city life and now that Bolin was going out somewhere where Mako couldn't watch him…Mako didn't like it and it was even more frustrating because he couldn't do anything about it. Bolin had already signed the paperwork and was going to be shipped off to boot camp that summer. The thought of having another seven months with Bolin made Mako the slightest bit depressed. He dropped his shoulder and nodded at Toza.

Korra noticed Mako's eyes tighten at the mentioning of his brother enlisting. She hadn't heard this news before; did it bother Mako? Korra wasn't sure whether or not she was supposed to ask. Korra watched Mako closely as he completed the transaction; there was something in how he carried his shoulders that told Korra that something about Bolin enlisting bothered him, but what could she do about it?

Korra thought about when Mako offered her his ear when she was ready, so it was only fair for her to do the same. Actually, Korra found herself _wanting _to be the one Mako confided in. She was his friend. He was her first friend in the city and that's what friends did.

Mako carefully took the wrapped package from Toza and placed it in his coat pocket. With a smile, he handed the bag of dumplings over to the elder who rolled his eyes, but accepted the food with a smile on his face. With a nod of his head, Korra moved to follow Mako out of the store.

"Say hi to Bo for us, Mako!" Toza called from the register, "And take care of your girlfriend."

"She's not my girlfriend!" Mako whirled around to shout it before storming away, ignoring Tuyen's giggles and Toza's rumbles of laughter. Korra found herself smiling as she quickened her pace to catch up.

The two fell in sync with each other's footsteps again. When Korra turned to glance at Mako, she fought the urge to laugh at him for letting an old man and a little girl get to him like that. 'What a dork,' she thought fondly. Mako scowled at Korra's smirk.

"Well, at least I've got Bolin's present. Now what?"

"Maybe we can walk around a bit?"

Korra found nothing particularly interesting about the mall and that she was absolutely right to be uninterested in shopping. The only thing she liked were the decorations; it reminded Korra of her home, but other than that? Nothing interesting. The only other eventful thing that happened was a cashier named Wu who worked at the smoothie shop on the first floor making a pass at a horrified Mako.

Korra actually burst into tears from laughing so hard.

"It's not fucking funny," Mako snapped, shuddering as Wu continued to blow kisses in his direction. Korra howled louder when they left the mall, attracting the attention of many shoppers passing the exit. Mako cursed and started down the path towards his apartment.

"Wait, Mako!"

"Not if you're gonna laugh, I'm not."

"Aw, lighten up!"

Mako stiffened as he felt Korra wrap her arms around his; what was she doing? This was _not _a date. It couldn't be one. Mako fought hard against the notion of it being one because Korra was a friend. She was a friend who got out of a relationship with a woman and that was all there was to it. He was helping his friend.

That was it.

Mako repeated this in his head like a mantra; it seemed to work after a few minutes. The pair stopped under a streetlight facing a new teashop. Mako had always wanted to try it out since he had read good reviews from it. Maybe Korra wanted to go? He figured he might as well ask while they were still out and about.

"Hey, Korra…"

What he saw wasn't who he came with.

He saw the sad pathetic creature again, peering into the glass of the teashop with a grimy kind of sorrow he forgot she had the entire afternoon. It must be Asami again, but what was it? When Mako checked again, he realized that Korra wasn't looking at the teashop, but a sign that was posted on the window. Silently, he quickly read the contents, realizing that it was a hiring advertisement for Future Industries, the corporation responsible for Satomobiles.

Why would Korra be upset about a _job pamphlet_?

"Asami…is supposed to take over Future Industries when she graduates from university." Korra answered quietly, as if she had heard Mako's question.

_Oh._

Mako knew he was supposed to wait, but after seeing Korra so happy today, he decided that he would try this. Just once—

He squeezed the arms that were still locked around his, attracting Korra's attention. She tilted her head questioningly at him.

"Do you wanna talk about it? Over some tea?" he asked, pointing his chin in the direction of the teashop.

"Are you sure?" Korra asked quietly, "This isn't something that people would actually want to hear about."

"_I do_." Mako said, "But only if you're ready to share, Korra."

Korra thought about the proposal and for once, it didn't seem like a bad idea to talk about Asami. After all, Mako had done so much to help her feel better; she felt like she could actually trust him enough and who knows? Perhaps she'd be able to help herself in the end.

Hugging herself closer to Mako, Korra nodded her acceptance of Mako's offer.

"Thanks, Mako."

Arm in arm, the two entered the warmth of the teashop, leaving behind the reminder of what Korra once had in exchange for hot tea, good company, and possibly even a change in direction. Despite being in pain, Korra was hopeful of what was to come from this conversation.


	6. 3005

The Jasmine Dragon was swanky little teashop originally from Ba Sing Se. Having spent a few years in Ba Sing Se with his father's family, Mako had heard plenty of good things about the café. Mako and Korra were enveloped in a rush of warm air as they crossed over the threshold; a little bell dangling from the corner of the doorframe chimed as they entered. There wasn't anything out of the ordinary about the Jasmine Dragon. Since it was nearing seven o'clock in the evening, most of the café had been cleared out with the exception of a few college students hard at work studying for finals. Mako and Korra nodded to a few familiar faces before picking a booth secluded in the corner of the restaurant.

Their waiter—a young man with insanely coiffed hair and a standoffish attitude—quickly took their orders and disappeared, grumbling under his breath the entire time.

Mako couldn't help but think that this was a nice place to end their outing, at home with the cozy atmosphere the Jasmine Dragon provided. He hoped that it would have some effect on Korra, but one quick look told him that it'd take a little more effort to help her out. The two sat in a tense silence after their waiter dropped off their teas; Mako wondered if Korra was ever going to start. He could tell that she was struggling with this.

After all, it had been months and this was the first time she was going to try to open up.

Patiently, the Republic City native took a sip of the hot tea, relishing in the warmth that rushed through his body. Mako made a mental note to recommend this place to Bolin before turning his attention back to Korra, who still looked very much conflicted.

Her eyes, which were so clear and twinkling with mirth, were clouded; a film of indecision gathered in her blue gaze. Mako wondered how it felt to be left in the dust by someone that you loved. It had to be different from having your parents murdered out in some dark alley in the middle of Dragon Flats though Mako couldn't exactly compare the two instances since both experiences brought on two different types of pain that still left you crippled for months, if not years.

Seeing Korra struggle reminded Mako of the first time he had to tell his grandmother of his parents' untimely deaths; he was fourteen when he had to break the news. Mako remembered Grandma Yin waiting patiently in the rickety old daybed in the backroom of his father's beaten down childhood apartment. The scent of the teashop, a mixture of red beans and honey, brought Mako back to that rainy afternoon. It had taken 14-year-old Mako _hours _to spit out the news to his grandmother, but she waited the whole time, an encouraging smile on her face. He felt comforted by his presence at the time.

Sitting in this teashop with Korra made Mako long to see his grandmother. She'd definitely know what to say in this situation.

_'It's alright Mako, you don't have to say it if you aren't ready.' Yin wrapped one wrinkled hand around Mako's comfortingly. Mako looked at their joined hands and bit his lip; he wanted to tell her, he really did, but having avoided the topic for years, could he really just let this effortlessly slip past his lips?_

_Admitting this one thing to his grandmother felt like he was finally accepting the fact that he parents were gone._

_Gone and never to come back._

_With tears beading in the corners of Mako's eyes, he weaved his fingers through Yin's and met her questioning gaze._

_"Grandma…"_

Mako hadn't noticed his hands had made their way across the table, cradling Korra's loosely. Like Mako had done with his grandmother all those years ago, he felt Korra weave her digits through his, squeezing tightly, silently thanking him for his support. Grandma Yin's words flowed from Mako's mouth effortlessly.

"You don't need to rush, Korra. Only if you really want to."

"I know," she answered quietly. "I really want to tell you too, Mako. You've been such a good friend the past few months and I want you to know this."

"But only if you're ready."

"Of course," a ghost of a smile spread across her face; Korra kept her eyes trained on their joined hands, enjoying the warmth that Mako had provided her with. "I wouldn't have agreed if I wasn't ready."

Korra opened her mouth again after another pregnant pause.

"It's just…Asami was my first love, y'know? I thought she was _it_. She was all that I ever needed, and she just up and left. Just like that. I should have seen the signs, but I didn't and I feel so stupid, Mako."

Mako wanted to reassure Korra that she wasn't stupid. Why would she call herself that? For _falling in love_? That was hardly anything to feel stupid for. Though Mako couldn't imagine himself head over heels in love with someone, he supposed that there might been perks to having someone you were so closely linked to.

'Unless it didn't work out,' his subconscious cynically grumbled, 'Then you'd have to deal with _that_for months. Is it worth it?'

Mako chased away his negative thoughts, irritated that his cynicism had not decided to cut Korra some slack. Korra fell silent. Her eyes were still lowered, trained on their joined hands; Mako noticed her practicing something on her lips before she made eye contact with him.

"Mako, have you ever been in love before?" Korra asked out of the blue, "Like, so pathetically in love that you were unable to function without that person? That your entire being revolved around this one person who could break you so easily? Have you?"

Ever been in love? Of course not. When you're orphaned at eight years old, spend six years fighting to survive in underground Republic City, and another few in the filthy lower ring of Ba Sing Se, romance wasn't something at the forefront of your mind.

He answered honestly, "Never."

His answer seemed to distract Korra from her sorrows; she leaned back, releasing her fingers from his. Mako ignored the cold that filled the spaces Korra's fingers had once taken.

"_Never_?" she parroted, as if she were testing the words on her lips. "Like never ever?"

"It's not something I had time to think about," he answered, somewhat defensive of the smirk curling onto her lips. While he was glad something made her feel better, Mako would rather have the conversation pointed somewhere that was less detrimental to his self-confidence. Thankfully, Korra didn't continue with his lack of a love life. Instead, she went in a direction completely opposite of where he thought she'd go.

"Was it hard? Raising your brother by yourself?" she asked quietly, as if questioning whether or not the topic was all right for Mako to discuss. His rough childhood was something Mako had gotten over _ages _ago, way back when he first met his grandmother. Again, he answered her honestly.

"Very," he added, "still is sometimes, with Bo graduating from school soon."

"And enlisting in the military…" Korra said gently, gauging his reaction. Mako knew it was difficult to him to accept that Bolin was going to leave him here while he traveled the country, helping those who needed it. But remembering the scared six-year-old he comforted every night after their parents' deaths…_that _image of Bolin, gap-toothed with a running nose and a dirty face, pressing his little face into the fabric of Mako's red scarf to sob under the fall of night; out there, in the cold where no one cared if they were fed or cleaned or cared for, where they only had each other to depend on.

Remembering all of that made it difficult for Mako to let Bolin go.

Mako felt warm fingers brush against his own again. Korra gave him a gentle smile.

"You listened to me. I want to listen to you, Mako."

"It's not something people would care to hear."

"Well, I care," Korra forcefully said, "so spill, cool guy. You might as well while we're crying over tea. This is a pretty swanky place, nice pick."

"Right. Well, if you insist…"

"I do."

Fiery determination flared in Korra's eyes, reminding him once again of the qualities he liked best about his friend. Mako could feel the corners of his lips turning upwards into a smile; it was getting a lot easier to do that in front of Korra. She patted his arm with her free hand. "Go on, Mako. I'm listening."

Mako's words came out of him like a broken faucet.

"I've only ever had Bolin this whole time," he confided, looking down at their clasped hands, "When our parents died and we were out on the street, freezing to death and starving, we only ever had each other. I mean, when Grandma found us, I was happy to have a family again, but that was six years after it happened. Bo and I…we were fending for ourselves for six years and I just don't know how I'm going to live without him around. I'm still trying to figure it out."

"You will, Mako."

"I hope so. Thanks for listening, Korra."

"Thank you for being there, Mako."

Korra couldn't tell if she was comforted more by the strength of Mako's fingers wrapped around hers or the spark she could see in his amber eyes, but whatever it was, it was helping Korra fill in that hole left by Asami bit by bit.

Korra's smile turned a little brighter that evening.

—

"Tea was a good idea!"

An hour later, Korra and Mako exited the Jasmine Dragon, once again out on the street. Despite being pitch black outside, the lights of the restless city prevented the pair from seeing any stars. Korra pouted at this revelation.

"You can't see the stars."

"Korra, we're in the city. It's too bright for that, and what kind of idiot just stands there _stargazing_in the middle of the city?" Mako said distastefully, "You're asking to get mugged."

"Oh, shut up, dummy. You city folk wouldn't know _natural beauty _if it punched you in the pretty face," Korra retorted, reaching up and flicking Mako on his nose. "We're gonna have to take a trip down the Southern Water Tribe one of these days. I think you'd like the celestial lights; they're said to have been caused by—"

"Avatar Korra leaving the spirit portals open after the second Harmonic Convergence," Mako finished, "we all know the legend. Jeez. Wait, were you named after her? Avatar Korra?"

"No, did I tell you my real name was Kyoshi?"she deadpanned, prompting her grumpy companion to scowl. Korra laughed boisterously before bumping her hip against his.

"Yeah, but it's a pretty common name back home."

Mako had opened his mouth to reply, but was abruptly cut off when Bolin appeared from around the corner, tackling his brother in one of his infamous suffocating hugs.

"Mako, Mako, Mako!" Bolin greeted, squeezing his brother tightly.

"Bolin, I like having my ribs not cracked."

"Oh, my bad."

Bolin was everything Korra had imagined. He was childlike and, from what she could see, bright. Total opposite of his older brother, though she suspected that he had the same dork gene Mako tried so hard to hide. She chuckled at the thought, attracting Bolin's attention at once. Green eyes widened and flew to his older brother, who shrugged indifferently. Bolin grinned and flocked to Korra's side.

"You're Korra!" Bolin said, "Mako's told me so much about you."

"Oh?" she asked, raising a brow at Bolin's older brother. Mako smirked. "What has he said?"

"Nothing much," Bolin admitted with a noncommittal shrug, "You're Narook's niece and that you hit really hard," Korra snorted while Bolin continued, "Anyway, what are you guys doing out this late? I just got back from the mall to visit Toza and he mentioned something about you stopping by with your new girlfriend."

"Friend," Mako corrected defensively, "Just a friend."

"Yeah, cool. But what are you guys doing out?"

"Oh, we were just out getting some tea," Korra answered, smoothly leaving out their initial goal. He didn't need to know that bit until tomorrow, "We just finished, so we were leaving. Um," Korra turned to Mako, her happiness at having spent this afternoon with him visible in the form of a flush on her cheeks, "thank you for today, Mako. I had fun."

"Oh, um, you're welcome." Mako replied awkwardly, feeling self conscious in front of Bolin's lecherous grin. "Maybe I'll see you tomorrow for lunch."

"Yeah," Korra couldn't help but feel hopeful at the promise of maybe, "maybe."

She didn't really want to leave after having such a fun day out with Mako, so Korra was incredibly grateful when Bolin chimed in.

"Or Korra, do ya wanna come over tomorrow for my birthday? It's gonna be me and Mako and Opal and a few other friends. It'll be fun! Mako's gonna bake the cake and it's gonna be awesome."

Mako nodded in approval of Bolin's sudden invitation, "Yeah, come over Korra."

'Perhaps this arrangement _is _what's best for me,' Korra thought cheerfully. She nodded happily. Bolin whooped, gave Korra a high five, and bolted down the street, saying something about needing to check up on Pabu, whoever that was. He left Mako and Korra again under the streetlights.

"So, you're really baking the cake?" Korra asked, "I didn't know you could bake."

Mako grinned, "Learned from my grandmother. She bakes the best taro cakes."

"I've always wanted to learn how to bake taro cake," Korra said wistfully, staring at a closed bakery across the street.

Mako heard himself propose an invitation before actually thinking about it, "Well, if you wanna come by early after class, I can show you how."

He was relieved when he saw the brightest smile he had ever seen from Korra all day. She lightly punched his arm, proclaiming, "It's a date!" before disappearing into the night.

Mako felt like he was floating the entire trip home with the promise of tomorrow to keep him warm.


	7. sunny

"No, Korra, you gotta separate the yolks from the whites!"

"What is that even supposed to mean, you amoeba? You're wasting the _egg_! Just throw the whole thing in there!"

"The recipe doesn't call for that, crazy!"

"Well, the recipe is wasteful!"

Even if he was currently bickering with Korra, Mako could honestly say that he was having fun making a mess in his shabby little kitchen. Seeing Korra try her hand at a traditional Earth Kingdom dish was _beyond _hilarious, especially when the girl only had experience with Water Tribe cooking.

Korra grumbled to herself as she beat the egg whites; Water Tribe cooking generally used_everything _that was placed on the counter. She eyed the leftover eggshells and egg yolks disdainfully before dumping the frothy mixture in the bowl of dry ingredients.

"You're doing very well, Korra. Maybe if we have time, I can use the leftover egg to make some egg custard tarts."

Korra perked up immediately, "I love egg custard tarts! They're my favorite."

"Well, I'll keep that in mind for when your birthday comes around, now finish mixing the batter. We only have three hours left."

"Alright! Alright!" Korra took a plastic spatula and went to down on the mixture, gently combining the dry and wet ingredients. The thick batter blended to create a light lavender, the color of most confectionaries taro-flavored. Growing up in the Southern Water Tribe, it was very rare to have taro roots laying around the house, so on the rare occasion that someone did manage to rustle one up, you could bet on having the entire village over for dessert. She'd only had taro cake once in her life, when she was five and visiting her cousins living on Kyoshi Island, a small Earth Kingdom village close to the South Pole.

She had only remembered the strange purple color it had…and the fact that she liked the flavor (even if 18-year-old Korra couldn't quite remember the taste.) Korra's cousin Eska had mentioned that it was something that was really hard to make, but under Mako's (annoying, nagging, _stupid_) instructions, she couldn't have felt any more at home with her near nonexistent baking skills.

"So," Korra began, pouring the batter into the lined baking dish Mako had prepared for her, "your grandma taught you how to bake?"

He nodded, "My dad's family owns a small bakery in the lower ring of Ba Sing Se. They used to have a fruit cart, but nobody's willing to buy rotten fruit these days. I spent most of my time there baking with Grandma, so naturally, I picked up everything that she taught."

"That sounds like fun," Korra said wistfully, "the only thing I learned back home was how to fish."

"Fishing? You're kidding. How was that?"

Mako took the pan from Korra and dropped it onto the counter a few times. Korra curiously leaned over the counter to see what he was doing. She watched air bubbles surface and pop in the batter before continuing.

"Awful, imagine being a little kid and being stuck in a canoe for _six hours_," Korra leaned back to sit on her stool again; she kept talking as Mako flitted around the kitchen, making sure the settings on the oven and timer were correct before sliding the cake in, "sometimes, I thought I was gonna catch midnight madness or something. I mean, it was great spending time with my dad, but spirits, I would have been happier if we were playing fetch with Naga outside the house or something."

"Who's Naga?"

"My best friend," Korra replied breezily, "She's also my pet—"

"Oh," Mako interrupted, remembering an earlier conversation he had with Narook, "your polar bear dog. Narook told me about her."

"He did? What else did he say about me?"

"Nothing really," Mako said, turning a watchful eye to the stove, "Just your personality, your likes and dislikes, your pet…oh, and your ex-girlfriend."

"But that's everything." Korra deadpanned, flicking an eggshell at Mako.

"Huh…so it is," Mako said.

"Dork."

"Get new material, Korra."

"Whatever," she dismissed him with a wave, "Well, uncle told me quite a bit about you."

Now _that_ was interesting. Mako attempted to hide his attentiveness behind a veil of indifference, "Oh? What'd he say?"

"Nothing really," Korra answered, her voice a perfect imitation of Mako's, "Just your personality, your likes and dislikes, your brother…oh, and the fact that you're a freaking _nerd_."

"You set that up!" Mako burst, striding over to Korra's side of the counter. Korra's grin was infectious.

"Well, you fell into that, cool guy," she replied, reaching up to ruffle Mako's messy locks. The teen ripped his head away from Korra's reach, scowling. Korra couldn't help but feel uneasy as Mako looked around the kitchen for something; when he paused on the sack of flour abandoned next to the windowsill, a devious smile began to curl onto his face.

Korra wasn't fast enough to avoid the fist of flour he chucked at her face.

Luckily for Korra, Mako wasn't fast enough to avoid her charging at him, hands full of leftover taro root powder. She tackled him to the ground, the pair of them disappearing in a cloud of flour and taro root powder.

Mako was sure that the neighbors could hear their shrieks of laughter, but in between watching Bolin's cake bake and keeping a flour-loaded Korra at bay, he couldn't really find it in himself to care. It was the most fun Mako's had since yesterday.

(And Korra was also responsible for yesterday's fun.)

When Bolin came home with Opal, he couldn't help but be suspicious as he saw Korra and Mako sitting closely together on the counter, both laughing while covered in flour and taro powder. The kitchen had been cleaned spotless, a state that it was rarely in whenever he and Mako were in the apartment together.

"What happened in here?" Opal asked.

"Nothing," Mako and Korra answered in unison. They stopped to stare at each other, their lips buttoned tightly as if there was a secret they were keeping; one skeptical brow raise from Opal sent them into a fit of laughter, which was _very _rare of Bolin's older brother.

'Come to think of it,' Bolin thought to himself, 'Mako hasn't been so uptight lately…Opal did mention that he and Korra started hanging out more often…'

The 17-year-old only pondered over these facts for a few more minutes before allowing himself to be totally sidetracked by the cake resting on the counter.

"Yes! Taro cake! Mako, you're the best!"

"Korra did the mixing. I only stuck it in the oven," Mako said, "so if you die from food poisoning or whatever, it was Korra's fault. Not mine."

"Oh, shut up."

"I'm sure it'll be fine," Bolin reassured, lightly bumping his fist against Korra's shoulder, "Thanks, guys."

—

"How can you sleep with Bo going off like a _lawn mower_ back there?"

Mako shrugged indifferently, packing the remainder of Bolin's birthday cake into a plastic container for Korra, "You spend your entire life with this guy and you can sleep through _anything_."

Korra scoffed and returned to her sweeping, "You probably snore louder, that's why it doesn't bother you."

Mako rolled his eyes, ignoring her comment while heading over to the sink to start on the dishes. Bolin's birthday party had, for the most part, gone by successfully. The brothers had a handful of Bolin's close friends over, and though Mako typically disliked having any company over, he could honestly say that he had a good time. Bolin was happy, and Korra was there to keep him company.

Even now, as she swept around their small kitchen, Mako was still having fun. The two had established a dynamic that worked even outside of Narook's restaurant and Mako couldn't have been happier. He tried to tell Korra not to trouble herself, but quickly shut up after Korra cast him a withering glare. Mako found it rather fascinating, seeing Korra flit around his dusty kitchen, helping him clean. He was amazed at how natural Korra was at this, fitting into his life seamlessly.

It wasn't so long ago that they were constantly at each other's throats, and now—Mako was finding it more difficult to imagine his life without Korra in it.

His cheeks flared up at this admission.

'I'll just never say that out loud. Ever,' he told himself, returning to washing the dishes.

Korra was nearly done with sweeping. She didn't have much left to do since, thankfully, Bolin and Mako's other guests hadn't made that much of a mess in the first place. She was glad she came.

Korra knew she was going to enjoy herself at Bolin's birthday party. She quite liked Bolin's company—he was funny and nice; it was still surprising that Mako had for the most part raised Bolin single handedly—and having Mako there next to her, covered in flour and taro root powder, arguing that there _was _a difference in only using egg whites in a cake recipe (she still disagreed, but_whatever_), made the day that much better.

Leaning the broom against the corner she had found it in, Korra strode over to the sink where Mako stood washing the dishes. Korra noticed Mako speaking to himself as he scrubbed vigorously at the old pots and pans. She grinned brightly when he stopped abruptly, suddenly noticing her presence. He tilted his head at her silently, questioning what was wrong. Korra shook her head and grabbed a tea towel, starting on drying the dishes. They worked for a few minutes in a comfortable silence before Korra spoke first.

"Thank you, Mako." she said quietly.

"Huh? For what?" he replied, genuinely confused by her gratitude, "Letting you help clean? It's not like I had a choice, with that look you were giving me."

She laughed softly, nudging Mako in the ribs, "No. For today, for yesterday—for everyday that you've given me. I haven't had this much fun for so long."

Mako had suspected that Korra was happy hanging out with him and his brother, but hearing her say it was completely different. It was better than any speculation, knowing that Korra was having fun; that she was actually happy. The corners of Mako's lips lifted as he finished washing his last dish. Turning off the faucet, he turned to lean against the counter, watching Korra work on the drying.

"I don't remember having this much for in a while either," he confessed lowly, "It's…nice."

"Yeah," Mako agreed, "It is."

Perhaps it was their proximity or maybe it was the fact that he had spent a great deal of time around her, but there was something there that charged the air between Mako and Korra. He didn't know if Korra was aware of it, but he sure as hell could feel it. It went right through him, surging from the crown of his head to the soles of his feet. Mako would often experience this sensation whenever Korra was with him; whenever she would flick fish broth at him at work, or when she would steal half of his noodles at lunch, or when she tackled him to the ground with every intention of making him eat flour and taro root powder.

It was warm, sometimes hot; it was for the most part pleasant.

It was exciting.

It was Mako's urge to laugh at Korra when she insisted that it didn't matter whether or not an entire egg was used in a family recipe. It was his natural reaction to roll his eyes hard into the back of his head when Korra would come into work thirty seconds late during Thursday's lunch rush. It was his need to hold her hand when she was in pain like last night.

One look in the countless shades of blue in Korra's eyes told him that she felt this strong bond forming between the two of him. She bit her lip.

"Mako, do you think it's possible to move on from someone you loved? Like, really _really _loved?"

He leaned back against the counter again, slowly processing her question.

Did he think she could move on from Asami? Absolutely. The Korra that Mako was getting to know was obviously strong. He could see it in the way she proudly carried herself at work and at school. He could hear it in the way she would laugh—a sound that he was starting to like more with every passing day. He could feel it in the way she was speaking now—with a clear quiet determination.

He answered her honestly.

"I think that if you're already using 'loved' instead of 'love,' you're already on your way."

Korra's head snapped up at his answer, eyes wide in realization. Did she still love Asami? It's been months, and while Korra was sure she wasn't head over heels like before, she couldn't say for certain whether or not she was still in love. But looking into Mako's warm amber eyes, she knew he was right: she was on her way to something better. Something bigger.

Her heart drummed soundly against her chest at the thought, surprising the 18-year-old one more, because this one revelation helped Korra disassociate Asami's name from the crippling pain that had paralyzed her for months. Now, Korra only wanted to be happy. The past few months being friends with Mako opened her eyes to that.

"I want…" she said slowly, reaching over to entwine her fingers with Mako's, "…I want to be happy, Mako."

Korra felt the tiniest bit happier when she felt him squeeze back, "Then you should do what makes you happy. It's not unreasonable to want that, Korra."

—

"Nice job cleaning, bro," Bolin commended, stretching out on their ancient, overstuffed sofa, "Cleanest I've seen the apartment in months."

"Oh whatever," Mako said, "I wouldn't have gotten the place this clean if it weren't for Korra."

"She stayed to help?" Bolin admitted to himself he wasn't completely surprised. He knew his older brother spent a lot of time with her.

"Yep."

Bolin stopped to reflect on the past few months. He remembered the first night Mako met Korra; he was so angry. Mako actually stayed up until two in the morning complaining to Bolin. He continued ranting even after Bolin had gone to sleep, curled up on the couch while his older brother paced the living room. Bolin had never seen Mako that wound up.

And now? Mako was going through the fridge and _humming_. Humming!

While Bolin was happy that Mako was so content with life, he couldn't help but to worry for his older brother, which was something Bolin rarely had to do. However, with the way Mako's been looking the past few weeks, Bolin couldn't help but to take notice. The humming, the little smiles that Mako would get at the mere mentioning of Korra's name, late night phone calls or texts, lunch dates-that-totally-weren't-but-kind-of-are-anyway…

Bolin knew these signs, mainly because he had done the same thing when he met Opal. The difference with this situation was that Opal hadn't just gotten out of a long term relationship with a _girl_.

He swallowed.

"Say, bro?"

"Yeah?"

"Can I ask you a question? Like, a serious question?"

Mako shut the fridge door, shooting Bolin a quizzical expression. Bolin looked a little nervous. What could he possibly want to ask? Mako couldn't recall that last time Bolin looked so…_concerned_. Running a hand through his coarse hair, Mako crossed the room and sat down next to her brother, ignoring the springs groaning under the added weight.

Bolin cleared his throat.

"Okay, so, I need you to be really honest with me because I've been seeing this for weeks and I just want to be sure. Do you promise to be honest with me?"

"Uh…sure?"

"Good! Good," Bolin paused. How could he ask this without embarrassing his brother?

'No, Mako always gets embarrassed, it's better to just spit it out,' he decided with finality.

"Mako, do you _like _Korra? As in like-like. Like girlfriend material like? Like how I like Opal or like how—"

"I got it, thanks." Mako interrupted.

"Well? Do you?"

He thought about it.

Did he like Korra? She was a great friend. She was fun and helpful and smart and Mako supposed those traits outweighed the fact that the girl was also _batshit crazy_. But did he like her the way Bolin suspected?

Flashbacks from yesterday filled Mako's memories, '_Mako, have you ever been in love before?_'

He was positive he hadn't ever been, so how would he know if he was now? He just thought he was having a good time with his friend, but apparently that wasn't the case to Bolin. Could there be something more than what Mako was seeing? It would certainly explain his need to always be around the girl. It would also explain the rush of heat that would erupt in the pit of his stomach whenever their hands would touch or the constant thumping of his heart whenever they would spend minutes at a time not saying anything, only looking into each other's eyes before bursting out in laughter.

It would explain a lot of things, but did that necessarily mean what Bolin was thinking?

Mako couldn't answer that. Instead, he gave Bolin the best answer he could think of at the moment.

"I'm not sure."


	8. brand new

Mako hadn't been running for nearly two weeks. With his piles of assignments due and his job occupying most of his remaining free time, he just couldn't manage to squeeze in a run through the park. Except for today; it was his last off day for the week before having to return to work the next afternoon and Mako was determined to go running.

The 19-year-old pulled on running tights, a thermal and windbreaker, laced up his shoes and bolted out the door before Bolin even woke up. As Mako warmed up out in the parking lot, he couldn't help but feel that today was going to go well.

The weather wasn't that bad outside, it was warm enough so that the windows weren't fogged over and that the minimal bits of greenery that decorated Republic City weren't paralyzed by winter morning's touch of frost. As someone who spent a good chunk of his childhood fighting against freezing cold winter nights paired with starvation and poverty, Mako could honestly say that he _hated _the cold. Sometimes, he played with the idea of moving to his mother's homeland in the Fire Nation, where the weather was more bearable (warm _all year round_), but he knew deep down that he was going to remain in the city for the rest of his life.

Mako took off in the direction of the park.

Republic City's public park, located smack dab in the center of the bustling metropolis, harbored only a few visitors when Mako arrived. Since it was a school day, the park was cleared of any families. Whenever the young college student would go on his runs through the park, he preferred it that way. Easily breezing past a few other runners, Mako came to a slow stop in front of the large marble fountain sitting in the middle of the park.

He sat on the edge of the fountain, staring pensively at the sky. Infinite shades of blue swirled seamlessly into patches of pink, purple, and orange. From where Mako sat, he could see clouds of smoke from the city, rising up to dissipate in the cold winter air. A shining ray of light took his attention towards downtown, where the booming business district stood. Mako brought his hand up to shield his eyes from the sun's blinding beams of light peeking out from the side of Republic City's tallest skyscraper.

A closer look at the building allowed the young man to make out the lettering on the side: _Future Industries_.

Memories of Korra's face, twisted in pain two nights ago, came to mind, followed by Mako's brief conversation with Bolin the night before.

'_Do you like Korra_?'

The notion of Mako actually _liking _someone was so foreign. Much less Korra, who had proven herself to be a very valuable friend over the course of the semester, but did that mean what Bolin thought? Mako wasn't too sure. Whenever she was near him, he felt as if he were on the edge of some dark hole; he couldn't escape, and Korra was the gravity that was yanking him down.

Wasn't romance supposed to be something that you could see so clearly? Mako had seen his own fair share of romance movers, and he would often leave the theaters irritated because _hello, how can you be so unaware of yourself that you don't see yourself falling in love_? Just the idea of surrendering your feelings to someone else was something that Mako rebelled hard against.

No way was he going to let someone have _that _much control over him.

No, it'll be a cold day in hell before he allowed that happen.

But the question here was if Mako was on his way to that? Was Korra a bad person? Absolutely not. Once you looked past all that anguish and irritating moodiness, Mako saw that she was pretty amazing. He'd listed in his head the countless factors that he had enjoyed seeing in Korra so many times; he didn't even have to think hard to recite these said traits if someone ever asked him.

Mako wondered what kind of girlfriend Korra would have made, surprising himself with how much the notion _pleased _him. His heart picked up and he tore his eyes away from Future Industries, staring blankly towards the direction from whence he came.

'Where the _fuck _did that come from?' he demanded of himself.

Mako, so deeply absorbed in his thoughts, mere _moments _from receiving a revelation, didn't even see the great mass of white fur sprinting towards him.

"Naga, slow down! Hey Mako! Mako!" he picked up his head, his heart dropping into the pit of his stomach as he spotted a _polar bear dog_ lunging for him. Mako yelped and, seeing as he had nowhere to run, braced himself for impact.

Mako thanked his lucky stars that Korra had a good hold on the leash holding the furry beast back. Naga stopped abruptly, tail wagging happily as she sniffed Mako. He stared at the wild beast in wonder. _This _was Naga? She was _huge_! He wondered how Korra was able to keep a pet that massive in her apartment or how she even able to tame something that was supposed to be out in the wild.

Just another feat to make the girl more amazing to Mako.

Korra's laughter brought his attention away from Naga; he peaked around Naga's head to nod his hellos to his friend.

"Hey, Korra. Thanks for not sicking your polar bear dog on me."

"Oh please," Korra replied, "she wasn't going to _eat _you. She just wanted to say hi, isn't that right, Naga?"

Naga barked loudly in Mako's ears.

He looked into Naga's dark eyes and saw a well-cared for animal. Her coat was a glossy snow white and her eyes were milky and dark; even if she was over excited at being out in the open air, Mako could see that she was a gentle soul. A gentle soul that Korra herself raised.

Impatiently stamping her paws on the cobblestone, Naga tilted her head towards Mako, her whines low in her throat. Mako looked to Korra quizzically; she chuckled at his confusion and translated.

"I think she wants you to pet her."

Carefully, Mako reached up to scratch the back of Naga's ears. Naga leaned into his touch, clearly enjoying the attention that her owner's friend was giving her. Korra grinned widely.

"Hey, it looks like she likes you. She's usually so cautious around strangers."

"I would think that strangers would be cautious around polar bear dogs," Mako replied, absentmindedly stroking the soft fur, "besides isn't it dangerous having her in the city? Someone might try to take her and sell her to some exotic animal show or something."

"No way," Korra scoffed, dropping Naga's leash to plop down by Mako on the edge of the fountain, "I don't think anybody would be dumb enough to try to take on a polar bear dog. And besides, if she did turn up missing, I'd still be able to find her. Naga's got a microchip."

"Ah."

Like how Mako had done not too long ago, Korra brought her hand up to shield her eyes from the rising sun. As she stared in the direction of the business district, Mako surreptitiously observed her from the corner of his eye. The morning beams casted a glorious halo resting on the crown of her head. The loose tendrils from Korra's high ponytail danced in the gentle winter breeze, and Mako found himself wanting to capture the strands and tuck them behind her ear.

He stared in awe as the light touched her irises, revealing more shades of blue than Mako had initially thought possible. It was breathtaking. _She _was breathtaking—

_Wait_.

What?

His breath stopped as the revelation dawned on him, inevitable like the morning sun and dark edge that he had just fallen over. Gravity had claimed its victim and Mako had now realized what this meant.

It was ironic how not too long ago, he had been criticizing oblivious fools for not seeing the obvious when he literally had to have the _sun _spell things out for him. He was an idiot.

Mako had been told this before by both his brother and the beautiful girl seated closely beside him, but did he really think that they were on to something?

Not till today.

'Narook probably hoped this would happen too,' Mako realized, with surprise.

He liked Korra.

She had come into his life, successfully submerging Mako in an inescapable maelstrom and when things had calmed down enough for Mako to break through the surface again, everything was brand new.

What was he going to do now? Mako thought about this in horror while Korra shifted closer to her friend. His eyes flew open in terror as his newest object of affection leaned her head against his shoulder. Korra finally tore her eyes away from Future Industries, breaking the silence that had settled between the two of them.

"I've decided to take your advice," Korra said quietly, "I've decided to do what makes me happy."

Mako really wanted to kick himself.

'Way to go, idiot,' he thought venomously, 'of all the people you could have picked, you decided to go with someone who just got out of a relationship. With a girl. You wonder why you can't have nice things; _this is why_, you stupid, stupid, idiot.'

"I…I'm glad, Korra," he said, hoping that his wishes for her own well-being spoke louder than the internal conflict currently raging in the caverns of Mako's _empty head because you're a fucking _idiot.

"This whole time," she began, bringing her fingers up to play with the frayed edges of Mako's old red scarf, "This _whole _time, I really did think Asami was it. I told you that before. I thought she'd be the one that I'd marry and that I'd be happy with forever, but now that that isn't the case…well, now I feel like I can breathe comfortably for the first time in _months_. Before, it would hurt so much to even _think _of her name. Hell, I couldn't even go into downtown because of that _eyesore_over there!" Korra nodded in the direction of Future Industries before continuing, "It's really scary, not knowing who I'll be with since I was so sure about Asami. But now, I think I'm ready to make that first step to move on."

Mako hated himself for enjoying the close proximity between their bodies. Here she was, pouring her heart out to him about _love _and _moving on _and all that progressive shit that Narook wanted of her and all Mako could think of was _I like you. I like you so much._

It didn't help him that an elderly couple passed; beaming fondly at the _young couple_ _fucking cuddling_with their _cute little dog_ in the middle of the park that _everyone went on dates to_. It also didn't help that he could feel Korra wrapping two strong arms around his back and _what are you doing, beautiful girl?_

"I wouldn't have been able to do this without you, Mako. Thank you so much."

He could have done anything to reign in some control; unwrapped her arms from his body, scoot away from her; continue distracting himself by petting Naga, but _no_. Mako's brain was no longer relevant in this matter and, like Korra said, it was scary as hell.

He surrendered to his need to embrace the girl back.

Korra snuggled against his chest as he wrapped his arms around her smaller frame. Though his head was cursing at him, cursing him to the deepest pit of hell because this was _not _going to end well, Mako's heart caught fire. It burned brightly and warmed him in a way that was different from sitting in front of his old space heater back at the apartment or by wearing tons of layers out in the cold.

The explosions going off within Mako could probably produce enough energy to light up the entire city for _years_, and though he was bitter about the turn of events, he was also reveling in the foreign feeling that took over his body. He bent down to whisper in Korra's ear.

"You're welcome, Korra."

The soft smile she had given Mako in return made up for all his suffering.

The two remained in each other's arms for several minutes after that. And Mako, with a self-deprecating smirk, wrapped his arms more tightly around Korra, deciding to accept things the way they were for now.

After all, he _did _like her, and if she was happy, then so was he.


	9. clumsy

Korra came into work feeling good.

She had received an excellent assessment on her final group project, taken Naga out for a long walk around the city, _and _skyped with her parents for an hour and a half. Not to mention, she also had a nice few days off, going birthday present shopping with Mako, trying out that snazzy little teashop down by the mall with Mako, baking her very first taro cake under the watchful—and irritating as _hell_—eye of Mako(and making him eat half a sack of flour soon afterward), and hanging out at the park with him and Naga the following morning.

It was the most eventful few days that she had ever had while living in the city, and it was totally awesome.

Korra could finally feel the puzzle pieces settling into their own respective places after months of being so sad and confused. For the first time since Asami left, Korra could actually say that she was _happy_ with her life.

She was doing well in school, she had a job to keep her mind busy and her bank account fed, and she had found a new friend in Mako, who was more loyal than she ever would have thought.

Things were great.

"Korra, honey, how are you feeling today? Your mom tells me that you're looking better."

"I'm feeling better, Uncle," Korra chirped happily.

With Korra's new goal—to move on—at the forefront of her mind, any pain that was formerly associated with her ex-girlfriend couldn't have been any further from her mind. Korra was now willing to accept everything that single life had to offer her; the sky looked a little bluer and the grass a little greener.

Though Korra was a proud girl, she _always _gave credit where it was due, and she knew she wouldn't have made this breakthrough if it weren't for Mako.

He was her closest friend in the city, and she had never been happier with her decision to work at her uncle's noodles shop. Narook must have known the benefits of having Mako as a friend. After all, he was the one who stayed behind later than everyone else.

"Uncle?"

"Hm?"

Korra strode over to her uncle and engulfed him in a warm embrace. The older man, though confused at his niece's rare display of affection, returned the hug; he rubbed her back soothingly, "What is it, Korra?"

She shook her head; "I just wanted to thank you for bringing me in to work. If you didn't make me come in, I wouldn't have met Mako."

Narook gave a wizened laugh and held his niece tighter, pressing his cheek against her dark tresses, "He's a good guy."

"He's the best," Korra promised softly. She released her hold from Narook and gripped his forearms, smiling widely at her mother's brother. "He's the best guy anybody could ever meet, and it's all thanks to you, Uncle."

She reached on the tips of her toes to peck her uncle's cheek before skipping to the door, "I'm gonna clock in Uncle. See ya."

"Okay!"

Korra gently closed the back door behind her, leaving Narook to his own thoughts. He knew it was a good idea for Korra to make friends with Mako and vice versa. He'd seen his favorite employee just go on day to day without taking any particular interest in anything and it made Narook wonder how he would act if Mako were to be faced with his niece who was indeed a force to be reckoned with.

He touched his cheek where Korra's lips had been moments before, a soft smile curving onto his face. Narook was certain where things would lead at this point.

That smile, which upstaged the sun at any time during the day, looked exactly like his younger sister when she met Korra's father.

Narook was hopeful.

—

Korra entered the restaurant to the sound of the lunch rush. From the back door, she could hear the noodle chefs hard at work in the kitchen, their pots and pans clattering noisily against one another with the stove going on. Korra heard a fairly color string of curses as she passed the kitchen door, no doubt a result of Tahno burning his finger _again_.

_Amateur._

The main dining hall was _packed _with college students and working class citizens alike. Opal flitted from table to table, expertly jotting down orders and dancing back and forth between the kitchen and the front, dishing out orders like Narook's wasn't swamped.

"Oh, hey, Korra!" Opal greeted breezily, stopping beside the girl with a tray full of food. "Mako needs your help up front."

"Right. Gotcha."

Korra quickly scuffled to the front, stopping abruptly when she spotted her raven-haired friend. Opal said that Mako needed help, but he looked like his was handling the gorgeous, emerald-eyed dame _flirting _with him well. Korra raised a brow at the scene unfolding before her very eyes.

An unpleasant twinge began to scratch at her chest, but Korra ignored it in favor of seeing how Mako dealt with the thirsty customer obviously trying to get more than a table for the oblivious idiot. Korra rolled her eyes.

'What does he think he's doing?' she thought, irrationally agitated. The beautiful stranger let out a girlish giggle at something he said; Korra froze when she saw the woman rest a gentle hand on Mako's forearm.

'What the _fuck _does she thing _she's _doing?' Korra snarled, rogue fury ringing in her head. Korra stomped the rest of her way to the front, ignoring three other customers requesting an extra glass of water. Mako was still talking to the attractive woman.

"Wow, so you're trying to be a cop?" she gushed, inching closer to the host. Mako clutched the menus against his chest, clearly uncomfortable at her closing distance. He nodded, prompting the woman to bite her bottom lip, giving him very deliberate elevator eyes. "I _do _love a man in uniform…say, would you like to—"

Korra had heard enough.

"Hey Mako," she interrupted, reaching out for her friend's forearm. Mako glanced down at Korra, perplexed by her sudden appearance, but Korra didn't really care about that. What she cared about was getting this _hag _away from him. "Uncle wanted you to go bring some boxes from the back up to the front."

Mako didn't look very convinced; however, he _did _look relieved to have an excuse to bow out. Wordlessly, he handed a menu to Korra, bowed to the woman, and disappeared in the back. Korra's eyes glinted dangerously at the woman, who had the _nerve _to shoot Korra the nastiest glare.

"Table for 1?" Korra asked innocently.

—

"What was that earlier, Korra?"

"What was what?"

"That lady you totally cockblocked earlier. She was going in on Mako and you just cut that off really quick."

Korra and Opal congregated by the front register. The afternoon rush had dulled into a much calmer stream of customers. Most of them were ordering for take-out, so the restaurant was for the most part empty. The door rang again as their most recent visitor exited Narook's. Opal turned to face Korra again, a hand on her hip.

"Korra? Are you going to answer my question."

"I have _no _idea what you are talking about," Korra lied smoothly, flipping a page of her magazine. Her eyes didn't even register the Future Industries ad that she absentmindedly perused over. Opal scoffed and reached over to snatch the magazine from Korra's grasp.

"Don't play dumb with me," Opal warned, wagging the confiscated magazine front of Korra's face. "I totally saw what happened."

"What happened?" Korra asked, genuinely interested in Opal was going to say. "Because I thought I was saving my friend from receiving unwanted attention."

Korra didn't want to see her friend uncomfortable around some thirsty beggar; was that so difficult to understand? Korra didn't think there was anything that complicated about the matter. She knew how much of a _prude _Mako was around women and, as his friend, it was her job to protect him from any unworthy _suitors_.

For all Opal knew, that woman could have been a succubus whose plans were to kill Mako after stealing his virtue!

Korra imagined poor Mako strapped down to the old railroad outside of town, screaming for help as his captor—the woman from earlier—twisted her mustache deviously. There was no way she was going to allow that to happen to him.

"Unwanted attention?" Opal parroted incredulously. "_Korra, are you fucking serious right now_?"

"What?!" the girl snapped, "Is there something wrong, Opal."

"Oh, spirits, not only are you transparent, but you're _blind _too!"

"Say what?"

"Korra," Opal said calmly, placing a placating hand on her arm, "you were _jealous_ of that lady and Mako."

"What?!"

Absolutely not.

Opal had been loopy from eating so many noodles on the job; there's no way that she was _jealous_of Mako and that succubus. Besides, why should she be? It wasn't like they were _dating _or anything!

The thought of her and Mako dating was simply preposterous.

'Not that there was anything bad about Mako,' she corrected herself hastily. He was a good guy who was dealt a really shitty hand when he was eight years old and made the best of the situation. Mako was the stick in the mud who had helped pull Korra out of the darkest time in her life. He was loyal and selfless and, to be frank, a ginormous dork who wrote a to-do list every evening and knew a kickass taro cake recipe and was surprisingly good with polar bear dogs and had the_prettiest _brown eyes this city has ever seen—

There was no way that Korra was _jealous_ of any girl approaching Mako.

No.

"That's ridiculous. Absolutely not." Korra denied sharply, crossing her arms and turning away from Opal. "It can't be."

"It sounds an awful lot like you're trying to convince _yourself _of this revelation," Opal said, "Perhaps you need help finding an answer. Oh wait; I know who can help you. _Hey Mako! Korra needs you for somethin'!"_

"_Opal_!" Korra hissed.

"What? Just trying to help a bro out."

"I'm going to throw you in the _trash_," Korra promised dangerously. Opal scoffed, bopping her friend with the magazine.

"Oh please. Anyway, look not-jealous, Mako's coming!"

"You're so fucking embarrassing."

"Whatever, Madame I-don't-know-when-I-am-so-obviously-jealous, let me know how it goes. See ya."

"Nothing's gonna happen 'coz I don't know what you're talking about!" Korra hollered after Opal's back.

"What's not gonna happen?" Korra yelped and jumped away from Mako, clutching her heart. He raised a brow suspiciously at Korra, who quickly tried to regain composure.

Korra felt weird.

"Oh, hey, Mako."

"Hey, what was Opal going on about?"

"Who knows?" Korra replied, too quickly. Mako shrugged and began to collect the menus scattered on the front counter. A quick surveillance around the restaurant revealed that it was just the two of them in the room.

From the corner of her eye, Korra spotted Opal peeking through the kitchen window, Tahno and Hasook flanking her sides. The three of them gave Korra a thumbs up and winked suggestively at the girl; Korra's face ignited in flames and, in retaliation, she sent the three of them a rude hand gesture. She hid the offending hand behind her back when Mako spun around, eyeing her suspiciously. She grinned a little too widely and her face felt a little too warm.

"I wanted to thank you for this afternoon," Mako said, breaking the awkward silence that had settled in between them. "I know it looks like I don't know when someone is making a pass at me—"

"You don't," Korra deadpanned. Mako's lips twitched and he threw a dishrag at her to silence her before continuing.

"—but when I do, I get uncomfortable quickly. So, thanks for cutting in today."

Mako looked absolutely mortified sharing this information with Korra, and that made him look like an even bigger dork in her eyes. She beamed fondly at him and reached over to tweak his cheek affectionately.

"Anything to protect widdle Mako from those predators."

"Oh, shut up Korra. Hey, d'you wanna come with me to get some tea after work? Bo woke up with some bug that's been going around and wanted tea from that place we went to."

Her answer was immediate.

—

"Thanks for coming with me, Korra," Mako said outside of the Jasmine Dragon, "It was fun. I'll see you at school tomorrow?"

"If you don't catch that sickness yourself," Korra replied, "Take care of yourself, nerd. I'll see you tomorrow."

"Bye, Korra!"

She clutched her box of leftover teacakes and rushed in the direction opposite of Mako.

Korra ended another day with Mako, something that she couldn't complain for. Both had gotten off of work early and stopped by the Jasmine Dragon for rice crackers and green tea. A good end to an overall decent day.

With her mind filled to the brim with thoughts of Mako, the walk home wasn't very long at all. From where Korra faced, she could see the central business district of the city finally winding down after a long winter day. The last of the sun's setting beams just touched the magnificence of Future Industries.

Korra watched as the rays slowly began to sink, receding away from the impressive skyscraper and back into the shadows. In the distance, Korra could make out a long line of satomobiles, rumbling impatiently in bumper-to-bumper traffic along Kyoshi Bridge. Yue Bay's waters rippled softly against the shores of Republic City, silently awaiting the rise of the full moon.

The street Korra was currently on had no working streetlights, so if she were to look hard enough, she could see the North Star off to the east, dimly twinkling against the noisy canvas the city sky had painted. Korra concentrated harder to get a better look at the star, as it wasn't something that was easily seen in these parts of the world.

Mako's face entered her mind, unbidden.

She could _hear _his annoyance, as she remembered a conversation they had not too long ago.

'Korra, we're in the city. It's too bright for that, and what kind of idiot just stands there _stargazing_in the middle of the city? You're asking to get mugged.'

Giggles erupted from Korra's lips at the memory. It was rather silly to go looking for stars in the middle of a dark road, wasn't it? Silently reprimanding herself for her carelessness, Korra pulled her scarf up over her face and rushed back to her apartment.

Naga was quietly waiting on her bed when Korra pushed open the door.

"Naga! How was your day girl?"

The polar bear dog wagged her tail happily, hopping off her cushion to go greet her master. She wet the side of Korra's face with a swipe of her tongue; Korra laughed and rubbed the back of her best friend's ears.

"I had a good day too. I went to work and, like, there was this girl who was _all over _Mako, but whatever, I saved him," she rolled her eyes at the memory before continuing, "and then we went to go get tea after work. How's your day been? Have you been bored holding down the fort?"

Naga didn't answer, but it's not like Korra really expected her to.

Having grown up with only a giant polar bear dog as your best friend made Korra accustomed to filling any sort of silence with her own voice, much like she was doing right now.

_Bzzt! Bzzt!_

The vibration of Korra's cell phone in her pocket took her attention away from Naga. She dug deep into the pockets of her parka before producing her phone. She froze upon reading the name of the caller.

'What? Why now?' Korra thought, feeling her heart thud in her chest at a dangerous rate. Naga tilted her head at her owner, noticing Korra's sudden change in demeanor.

'Should I even answer it?' she thought to herself.

Panicked blue eyes flew over in the direction of her kitchen table, where she had unceremoniously dropped her box of teacakes from earlier. She bit her lip, her thoughts taken back to the park the day before. Korra was reminded of how understanding Mako was, smiling kindly down at her in the morning light. She didn't want to acknowledge it then, but even as she was promising to move forward with her life, she could feel a tugging sensation in her chest. It pulled harder and harder, only bearable when she was finally in Mako's arms. Heat rose up in the back of her neck as she recalled the hard muscles of his body melting against hers and the warmth of his breath against her ears.

The throbbing in her chest made her long to see him again.

She wanted to see Mako again. She wanted to see Mako _now_.

Naga barked, bringing Korra's attention back to her ringing phone. A new determination glittered in her eyes as she hit 'accept.'

"Asami?"

"Hey, Korra."


	10. daydreamin'

Bolin was still awake by the time Mako returned to their apartment. His younger brother lay stretched out on their worn down sofa, cocooned in a thick blanket. In the background, the news was on—something about _another _power outage down by the Silk Road Bridge—and Bolin had a vaporizer planted in the middle of their coffee table, sitting on top of a bed of used tissues.

"_Mako_, I want komodo chicken soup!"

"Yeah, okay, I got you," Mako said. The elder brother dropped his coat, hat, and gloves on the table and got to work in the kitchen. Over the stovetop, Mako addressed Bolin, "Bo, shouldn't you be in your room sleeping? You aren't going to get any better if you're out in the open."

"What's so open about the living room?" Bolin answered. The poor thing's nose had been stuffed since last night. Mako was reminded of the first cold Bolin caught after their parents died; Mako was nine and Bolin was seven at the time. Contrary to popular belief, it _was _possible to catch one during the summer, and Mako learned that the hard way. Bolin was probably _the _worst patient to have, what with his constant whining and bellyaching, 9-year-old Mako had to exert all of his effort into not throwing the boy into the bay below the bridge where they had spent most of their vagabond days at.

At this point in their lives, Mako was well practiced in the art of caring for his ill younger brother. He stirred the broth into the pot, skillfully tuning out Bolin's moans from the living room. While the soup heated, Mako replayed the events of today in his head.

He encountered a customer who came onto him strongly with very unwelcome sexual advances. This wasn't the first time it happened to him; Mako knew the mechanics of _dating_. He wasn't quite as naïve about woman as people thought. Though, most of the time, it was a lot easier to ignore them—Bolin would often say it was because his brother was a grouch, but Mako just wasn't interested in taking on any women.

Until he met Korra, that is.

Relief was a breath of fresh air when he felt her firm grasp on his forearm; Mako was taken back by how tightly the girl had curled her fingers around his wrist, sharply tugging Mako by her side, away from the woman. It almost felt as if she were trying to protect him. In a sense, she was, and Mako was glad that Korra cared for him enough to intervene on a situation where he was too uncomfortable to defend himself.

'Too bad Korra will never see you the way you want her to,' he thought to himself bitterly. Aggravation settled into his pores; he was still angry with himself for liking Korra, even if it wasn't he couldn't help. She was crazy, yes, but that still didn't change the fact that the girl was every bit as amazing as she was wild.

"_Makoooo_, did you get my tea?" Mako looked away from the stove to the Styrofoam cup innocently sitting on the kitchen table. Covering the pot with a lid, he crossed the room to hand Bolin his tea. The boy grumbled his thanks to his brother and opened the lid, deeply inhaling its warmth, "I'm surprised it's still warm. It's freezing outside."

Mako shrugged and perched himself on the arm of the sofa, "Yeah, Korra and I just stopped by there like half an hour ago."

"You and Korra?"

Mako mentally slapped himself for giving Bolin an opening to discuss his blossoming feelings for his friend.

"Yeah."

"Did you ask her to go with you?"

"…yeah."

Bolin sighed and put his tea down on the table; his sudden out-of-character stern demeanor vaguely Mako of their father back when he was a little boy getting scolded. Bolin gently patted the empty spot next to him, inviting Mako to sit. Silently, Mako accepted. For minutes, the two brothers sat in a tension so thick it was palpable. Mako swallowed nervously.

"What is it, Bo?"

Bolin looked over his shoulder. He looked _awful_; red nose, baggy eyes that were misty with fatigue. Bolin wiped his nose with the back of his hand and coughed wetly before continuing. He didn't start with a question.

"You like Korra."

Mako sighed, resigning himself to Bolin's on-point observation. He nodded, "I do."

"Well, what are you going to do about it?" Bolin inquired, "Korra just got out of a relationship with a _woman_."

"I know, I know."

"Do you? Korra had a girlfriend, bro."

Mako knew what Bolin was getting to, and the revelation to this one basic fact was absolutely depressing for him to hear. He had heard Narook talk about Korra's ex-girlfriend, he'd heard Korra talk about how hopelessly in love she was with Asami, but had he really _heard_ it? Had he really heard that Korra, the girl that he now harbored feelings for, was with a _woman _for the past few years? Most likely not, since Bolin was just now bringing it up.

"I thought I did," he answered honestly. "Bo, I didn't ask for this to happen. Narook asked me to help her get over her ex, and I wound up liking her more than I thought. She's incredible."

"And she dated a lady."

Mako felt like one of those cartoon characters that had an anvil unceremoniously dropped on their heads. It's not like he _chose _to like the girl; it just _happened_. It was so fast too, one minute, they're screaming at each other in the middle of Narook's restaurant, and the next, they're engaging in a totally-platonic-not-romantic embrace in the middle of Republic City's most popular date locations. Mako had allowed himself to be whipped up in a whirlwind of _Korra_ and he was now headed down a road that led to catastrophe.

The worst thing about it was that _he couldn't stop_.

He was pulled over the edge and has been free falling ever since. His only option was to wait for rock bottom.

"Bo, what am I going to do? This isn't what I planned."

Bolin clasped a warm hand to Mako's shoulder, "I'm not too sure. But you'll figure things out. You always do."

Mako certainly hoped this were the case.

—

Mako was acting very strangely, Korra noted the next day during lunch.

The fall days were slowly fading into winter and with the nippy wintry winds taking over the city, all of the students retreated to the university cafeteria for their meals. As usual, Mako and Korra were sharing their lunch with each other; it was only when Korra was half finished with her food that she noticed that Mako hadn't eaten much since they met up.

She frowned.

"Mako, what's wrong? Eat," she said, pushing his food closer to his body. When Mako remained unresponsive, Korra leaned down to look up at his face. Pale skin and bloodshot baggy eyes; he looked _awful_. She had never seen the boy look so pathetic before—she was vaguely reminded of the first few weeks after Asami left—concern for Mako filled Korra. She spoke in a panic.

"Spirits, Mako. Are you okay?" Korra shifted closer to her friend, pressing a gentle hand against his clammy forehead, "Oh, Raava. Mako, you probably caught Bolin's cold!"

Suddenly aware of Korra's skin against his own, Mako reflexively ripped his head from Korra's hand, heat gathering in his cheeks. He hadn't slept since he and Bolin had spoken, a result of his most recent dilemma paired with worrying over his sick baby brother. Of _course _Mako was going to look ill the next day.

He scooted away from Korra and pulled his signature scarf up over his mouth.

"I'm not very hungry," Mako answered hastily, pushing his unfinished food towards Korra. "You can eat it."

"Nonsense!" Korra pushed the plate back to Mako, "You need to eat, Mako. Get your energy up."

Mako shook his head, "I'm really not hungry, Korra."

"Well, why not?" she demanded, "Do you need medicine or something? 'cuz I have some really good stuff from back home at my apartment. We can go get it after class."

"Korra, you don't need to bother yourself," he said, exasperated. Korra frowned and crossed her arms over her chest, a gesture she often did when she was starting to get annoyed. _Good_. Mako was getting annoyed as well.

"But I want to bother myself with it."

"Well, you shouldn't because I can take care of myself."

It's just like Korra to be damn bothersome about the _wrong_ things. And it was just Mako's luck that Korra would notice his being under the weather. Her mistaking his lovesickness for the common cold was just another instance that verified Bolin's insinuation last night: _Korra won't like you like that. Korra digs chicks, bro. _Mako gritted his teeth and ran his fingers through his coarse hair, a habit he had picked up whenever Korra was close by. They've had more good days than bad ones, but when shit hit the fan between the two of them, it got _everywhere_. Today was shaping up to be just one of those days.

His lips turned downwards in a scowl that matched Korra's.

"Stop being difficult, Mako," she snapped. "You're sick. You need medicine."

"I'm not being difficult!" he growled, "You're just being stubborn. I told you, I'm fine."

"Not when you're looking like a fucking kicked puppy."

"I don't know what you're talking about," he sniffed, irritated because that's exactly how he felt. But Korra didn't need to know that. "I can take care of myself, Korra."

"Well, obviously not if you're still here," Korra burst, standing up from the table. Mako gaped as the girl reached out to grab his hand, "We're going to get that medicine. Stop being a crybaby, let's go."

He opened his mouth to protest, but the sharp glare Korra shot at Mako shut him up immediately.

"Just let me take care of you and you can go back to being an idiot like usual."

Though she was annoyingly persistent, and though he was still peeved at himself, Korra, and the situation, Mako couldn't help but warm to the thought that she cared for him enough to try to help him when he was ill. Or when she thought he was sick. The tell tale tickle in the back of Mako's throat told him that maybe it wasn't _just _a lovesickness that he had. He sighed.

'_Bolin_…'

Korra's apartment was about a 10-minute walk from school; it wasn't too bad, even in the freezing United Republic weather. Korra lived on the seventh floor of a swanky little apartment complex on the corner of 9th and Azulon. She grinned at him, "Well now you know where I'm at, so stop by whenever."

"Sure."

Korra's apartment was a comfortable size for herself and her polar bear dog. It was clean and open, with a living room of mismatched sofas and a small TV nicer than Mako's own back at home. Afternoon light filtered through Korra's lace curtains, revealing the sea of blue and white that her home was primarily made up of. The apartment itself, which was for the most part very simplistic and homey, was very _Korra_.

"Come on in, silly!"

Naga was waiting inside her living room, tail whipping back and forth eagerly. The polar bear dog, a mass of white fur, walked up to Mako, eagerly waiting to be scratched behind the ears again. It seemed that she remembered Mako well from the park. He beamed fondly at the gentle beast, caressing gentle strokes behind her floppy ears. Naga leaned her head into Mako's hand.

"Ah, you remembered Mako, Naga," Korra said excitedly, patting Naga's head briefly before disappearing deeper into the apartment. "Mako, come sit!"

He obeyed, settling himself in one of Korra's lumpy sofas in the living room. From where he sat, he could clearly see the plethora of pictures adorning the walls. He could tell that all of these were taken back home in the Southern Water Tribe, with who Mako could only assume was Korra's family.

He saw that she looked exactly like her mother, something both Korra and Mako had in common. Looking at her parents, Mako could tell Korra's father was a hulking man who towered over both Korra and her mother by about a head and a half; though his size was intimidating, something in the man's gentle blue eyes told Mako otherwise. The softness in his face reminded Mako of Korra; when he took her to meet Toza and Tuyen, when he held her in the park, even now, as she stood at the entrance of the living room, arms full of—

"_What _is _that_?"

Her mouth stretched into a wide grin, "It's my mom's home remedy for sickness. It's a well-kept Water Tribe secret, so don't tell anyone!"

Korra plopped herself down on the cushion neighboring Mako's and twisted open the first bottle, which contained a thick, deep green fluid that smelled like fish. Mako covered his nose and recoiled from the offending scent.

"Spirits, Korra _am I supposed to ingest that_?"

"Oh, calm down, you big baby. It doesn't taste bad, I promise. This was the go-to remedy whenever I was sick as a kid. You'll be fine."

Mako wasn't too sure. The wicked glint in Korra's eyes hinted to Mako that it was quite possible she was lying to him about the substance not tasting bad, but considering the fact that she single handedly dragged him down to her apartment, he knew she wasn't going to let him opt out of trying. He watched as his crush dumped some of the secret remedy into a teacup.

"What are you gonna do with that?" Mako asked cautiously. Korra's head suddenly snapped up, her blue eyes catching Mako's. He felt all the oxygen leave his body from the sly smile she had given him.

"I'm gonna make tea," she announced proudly. "I gotta put the water on though, I don't know why I didn't do that in the first place."

She stood from the couch, and ruffled Mako's hair as she skipped to the kitchen. Self-consciously, Mako patted his hair back into place; his cheeks flushed pink at the sudden gesture of affection. What was she doing to him? Mako wasn't too sure. Impromptu shopping trips, walks in the park, _cake baking_—Mako wasn't the guy who agreed to go anywhere with anyone if it didn't have anything to do with school or work. And yet, here he was, taking any opportunity he could get to spend time with Korra. He sighed; he really had it bad for her.

And it was so typical that the first person Mako would have an interest in would be someone who wouldn't see him the way he saw her. Life was just unfair like that.

"I meant to tell you this at lunch today," Korra started, settling herself back on the couch, twisting her torso towards Mako, "but since you were being so _grumpy_, I couldn't."

"Tell me what?"

"Asami called me yesterday," Korra replied airily.

Asami, _the _ex-girlfriend Asami, called Korra last night. Mako tried hard to reign in the unpleasant sickness that settled in his bones, but he couldn't. Sometime after they had a good time at the Jasmine Dragon, the love of Korra's life phoned her. What for? Did she want to try again? Mako hoped that wasn't the case since he still remembered how badly hurt she still was the first time he had met her. His head spun with the possibilities; a panic seized his heart. He burned; although this burn was different from the pleasurable warmth he felt when Korra was close by.

No, this time, this fire actually _hurt_.

His heart thudded in his chest, hammering loudly over the silence that had filled the apartment. A placating hand reached out to settle on Mako's. Of course her touch would calm him down.

"Hey," Korra said quietly. "You don't look so hot right now; do you need to lay down?"

"I'm fine," he croaked, "Um, what were you saying? About Asami? Why did she call?"

"Nothing really," she replied, her fingers still clasped around his forearm. Korra observed their touching skin before continuing, "She wanted to know how I was doing. And told me that she was coming down to the city with her new boyfriend in a few weeks. She wanted to know if we could chill or something."

"New boyfriend?" Mako hated how this fact helped ease his panic. Korra nodded enthusiastically and released her hold on his arm, opting to lean against Mako on the couch. Reflexively, Mako threw his arm over Korra; he flushed a darker shade of pink when the girl smiled fondly at him before scooting closer to him.

"I think I'm getting over it. Like, finally, getting over it," she spoke softly, "Everything's happened so fast. Like, one second, any thought surrounding her would paralyze me, and now—nothing. I don't feel anything, Mako."

Korra lifted her head to meet Mako's gaze and in that moment, with the softness of her curves pressed firming against Mako's side, leaning heavily into his shoulder, Mako wanted nothing more than to kiss Korra.

'Keep dreaming, Mako. She's just now telling you that she got over her ex. And remember what Bo said yesterday.'

He told himself this, but that still didn't stop him from wanting to pull Korra in by her waist and—

He wanted her to know that he'd never hurt her.

He wanted her to know that he'd never leave her in pain for two months.

He wanted her to know that she was amazing and that he loved every bi—

Mako's thoughts halted abruptly as something he thought stuck to him. _Did he really just say love_?! No. Absolutely not. It was too soon, and the current situation was totally inappropriate for that stupid, _stupid _word. There was no way Mako was that close to hitting _rock bottom_.

"I even threw away that betrothal necklace," he heard Korra say from a distance. This wasn't really happening right now, "I thought that if I got rid of it, that would mean that I was letting go of her, and I was too hurt to do that before."

Mako had lost feeling in his arms and legs, watching helplessly as Korra shifted herself, hugging her body more closely to Mako's, "Had I not met you, I wouldn't have been able to take that first step."

Was it possible for Mako to have fallen in love with Narook's heartbroken niece?

"Thank you, Mako," a pair of soft, warm lips pressed gently on Mako's flushed cheek. It was just a fleeting touch, gentle, like the summer sun against one's eye lids or the brush of a butterfly's wings against the back of your hand, but the feeling of Korra's kiss against Mako's cheek was enough for him to answer his own question.

The whistling of the teapot summoned Korra to the kitchen. Carefully, she disentangled herself from their embrace and, with a gentle pat to the spot where her lips had been before; she disappeared into the kitchen, leaving Mako to his own thoughts.

Was it possible for Mako to have fallen in love with Korra in such a short amount of time?

When she emerged from the kitchen carrying the rest of Mako's medicine with a heartbreakingly beautiful smile, Mako knew the answer.

Yes, it was totally possible.

Mako had finally hit rock bottom.


	11. you make my dreams

"Thanks for coming here, kids. It really means a lot since Hasook and Tahno called out. It seems that they've caught some bug that's been spreading."

"That's because they probably got it from Mako, Uncle."

"Wait, I had that bug almost a month ago! It was probably _you _since you came into work spreading your germs all over the place last week."

"I was _not _sick."

"Yeah, okay, that's why you called me over to make you that fish tea you almost killed me with."

"What, it worked didn't it?! Mako, you're such an _ingrate_—"

"C'mon, kids. We gotta get this taste test out of the way."

It was another day back at Narook's restaurant. Korra's uncle had closed the place down in preparation for the citywide Glacier Spirits Festival going down in three weeks and had enlisted Korra and Mako in deciding what new recipe should be featured at the event since Narook was one of the caterers there. Korra and Mako were seated next to each other in the main dining hall of the restaurant, surrounded by plates of noodles.

"Now," Narook said, dusting his hands off on his apron, "I have to make a phone call, so just go ahead and start. Let me know which ones you think are good enough to be put in the festival."

"Uncle," Korra sighed, "they're _all _good enough. Everyone loves your noodles."

The older man beamed at his niece and reached over to ruffle her hair; the girl ripped her head from her uncle's hand and hastily swiped her hair back into place, pouting rather adorably.

"Just give your uncle a second opinion. And a third, since Mako knows his noodles."

"That's because Mako eats them every day."

"It's not my fault I rarely have time. And last time I checked, you always _eat _half of my lunch, so that just means that you eat them every day too."

"Oh whatever."

"Okay, kids, I'm just gonna duck out for a bit. Make me proud."

With that, Narook picked up the phone, and went to the back, quietly closing his office door behind him, leaving Mako and Korra to their oodles of noodles. They broke apart their chopsticks and got to work.

"Mako, are you gonna do anything during the break?"

Mako thoughtfully tapped his chopsticks against his chin. Was he going to do anything during break? Nothing particularly interesting outside of work. Though school did an excellent job at reducing the lifespan of the criminology major, Mako did enjoy learning more about the field he wanted to go into. And even if it was a pain to deal with sometimes, Mako could definitely say that he was enjoying college life. Plus, seeing Korra every day, whether eating all of his lunch or talking his ear off in the library when he was supposed to be studying was an added bonus.

'You still haven't answered her question, dummy.'

"Ah. I'm not. What about you?" Mako asked, "You going back home for break?"

Korra nodded, "Yeah, but it's only for the festival, and then I'm headed back over here. I'm leaving in three days."

Mako frowned. If Korra was going to be gone until the festival passed back in the Southern Water Tribe, then that meant she was going to be gone for three weeks! An entire _month_! He couldn't help but feel loneliness settle in his bones at the revelation; he hadn't gone a day without seeing her, and with this sudden disturbance…

…well, Mako wasn't too sure about how the break was going to be now.

'Fuckin' lovesick _sap_,' he griped to himself. After weeks of accepting that he had finally fallen in love with Narook's quirky niece, Mako could honestly say that he was a changed person. Now, for better or worse, he wasn't too sure, but he could honestly say that there was difference in everything now.

And by 'difference,' Mako meant that everything he passed reminded him of Korra.

The random joggers he would pass on his morning runs (Korra likes to run, too.) His neighbor's annoying as _fuck _little dog that was always barking (Korra has a polar bear dog that could probably eat that little shit for breakfast.) The sky on bright, sunny days (Korra's eyes are that _exact _shade of blue.)

_Everything _reminded him of her. And though Mako was certain he was set on a course for disaster, he knew that this was the happiest he had ever been in a long time. And it was all because of the amazing girl snarfing down noodles next to him.

"You gonna miss me?" Korra managed to ask in between bowls. Mako caught the mischievous glimmer in her eye before flushing pink and digging into his share.

Was he going to miss her?

'What kind of stupid question is that?'

He already did.

"I suppose."

"See ya, Uncle! I'll be back in a month!"

"Alright sweetie, say hi to your mother for me!"

It took nearly two hours to get the finalized menu hammered out, but as soon as Narook declared his satisfaction in the work, Mako and Korra were out the door and into the winter air.

The winds weren't very strong today, making the cold weather the tiniest bit more bearable, although the possibility of snowfall became more likely as the rolling gray skies swarmed around the bustling city.

Korra pulled her parka tightly against her body and inched closer to Mako. The 18-year-old had noticed that over the past few weeks, she'd developed this tendency to move closer to her friend. Sometimes, she'd get this urge to touch him, like now. Her arms were already locked around his before she knew it.

Korra couldn't exactly explain why she did these things; being physically close to Mako was always a great comfort to her, but touching him? It was a sigh of relief, even if their skin wasn't in contact, the fact that she could feel the hard muscles of his forearm tensing and relaxing through his parka made her feel...

…well, it made her feel more alive. It made Korra feel _whole _again, something she hadn't experienced since before Asami. The feeling of Mako's company: the feel of their linked arms, the sound of his voice-whether it be irritated by her constantly stealing half of his lunch or cajoling when she squirted fish broth on _herself _last week or sleepy when she would call him at midnight-the warmth of his amber eyes staring deeply into her own—just Mako himself; this feeling that was associated with being around Mako made Korra want more. Never being one to hold back, Korra welcomed this force pulling her closer to him with open arms.

Korra craved this new feeling that she would get when she was around Mako, and if that meant she had to hold his hand down the street to experience it, then so be it; her fingers would be locked in his until they were physically pried apart.

It didn't seem like he minded it either. In fact, Kora suspected that Mako expected her to latch on to him whenever they would walk down the street to go on their strolls through the park or their random shopping trips to the mall.

Unconsciously, her hands slipped down from his arms to capture his hands; she waited for his warm, brown gaze to peer down at her. Curiously, Mako tilted his head, squeezing their joined fingers.

Korra's face grew hot.

The fluttering that emerged in Korra's stomach scattered her focus, leaving her speechless, for a moment. Speechlessness appeared to be a symptom whenever Korra became a victim of Mako's stare. Quickly, she recovered her thoughts before speaking.

"Mako, do you wanna do something right now? Like shop for festival gifts or something?"

Mako thought about her proposal shortly. Korra mentally slapped herself as soon as the words slipped from her lips; what if Mako had something else to do? Though she had considered this possibility, Korra couldn't take her words back. She _wanted _to spend more time with him. Lately, Korra's desire to be around her best friend—yes, she could actually say that now—stemmed from deeper than just wanting to hang. No, every time Mako agreed to spend more time with the girl, she felt anxious and ecstatic and nervous and excited all at the same time.

It was like she was walking on sunshine and nothing could yank her down from this uplifting feeling. Her heart began thudding against her chest as she waited for Mako to answer.

To Korra's immense relief, he nodded; she smiled widely at her friend and hauled him down the street, their fingers still locked the entire walk there.

Of all the things Korra had experienced in Republic City, she admitted that the warmth of Mako's hand in hers was the best.

He was her best friend.

'You _idiot_,' Mako said to himself for the umpteenth time that afternoon.

Self-depravity was becoming a norm with Mako whenever it came to Korra. Every time they would get off of work or class, she would always ask if he wanted to accompany her somewhere, and every time, against his better judgment, he would say yes. And it was becoming increasingly difficult.

'So this is what dad meant by love being rough,' he thought bitterly as Korra hauled him down the street to the shopping mall, a place where they frequented often enough for employees to recognize them. Upon entering the mall, Mako purposely avoided the stares of many older employees, who gave the two a knowing wink whenever they caught Mako's embarrassed gaze.

It didn't really help him since Korra enjoyed holding his hand everywhere they went.

Not that Mako particularly minded, he was too selfish to release her hand, especially now since he always felt starved for her touch. Sometimes, Mako liked to pretend that Korra loved him like he loved her. With all the times that's she's hugged him tightly or held his hand or even _kissed his cheek_, it wasn't very hard for Mako to think such a thing. But with Bolin's warning hanging over his head—_Korra likes chicks, bro_—Mako couldn't fully enjoy the possibilities of falling in love with an amazing girl who had given him so much more in life than he had expected.

Some days, Mako wondered what would happen to him when Korra met another girl who she would come to like?

What would happen to _them_? Would Korra leave him paralyzed with pain like Asami had done to her?

'It wouldn't be the same though,' he thought to himself, 'Asami and Korra were in a relationship at the time. This is just one-sided.'

Mako sighed out loud; he loved a girl who would never love him back, even though she gave him the attention and affection that he craved, _and _she was leaving him for three weeks to go home.

"Stop sulking, Mako!" Korra admonished him with a sharp tug of his hand, "This is no time for you to be grumpy. We gotta get presents for Opal and Bo!"

Mako observed Korra's serious expression: eye brows furrowed with that _adorable _pout before closing his eyes.

If he was going to beat himself up over this, then he might as well get as much of her as he can now.

"Alright, where to first?"

A wide grin stretched across Korra's face and she began yanking Mako down towards the stairs, "We're gonna visit Toza and Tuyen! We need to get the dumplings though."

Mako felt his lips twitched upwards into a small smile and allowed Korra to drag him up the stairs before realizing something important.

"Korra, we're going in the wrong direction for the dumplings."

"What? Why didn't you say that before?"

"I was distracted! Ugh, c'mon…" Mako took the lead, pulling Korra in the opposite to the small Chinese restaurant on the first floor, trying his hardest to disregard the weight of Korra's stare boring into his back. He nearly jumped in surprise when Korra gasped suddenly, tugging his arm back to stop him.

"Oh, I forgot Mako! Do you wanna come to my last power disc match of the season?"

"That depends," he said, "Do you want me there?"

Korra sucked her teeth impatiently and clipped Mako's shoulder with her free hand, ignoring his wince. "Of course I want you there. I'm going home the next morning, so you have to come then, okay? Promise me, Mako!"

"Fine, I'll come."

"Yes!" Korra whooped; she hugged him quickly for a moment, ignoring the stares of passing strangers. "You're the best!"

"Yeah, yeah…now, c'mon, let's go," Mako separated himself from Korra and strode in the direction of the Chinese restaurant. A minute later, he felt Korra's hand catch his again, squeezing meaningfully.

As they walked to get Tuyen and Toza's dumplings, Mako made a mental note to get a gift for Korra before she left.

_Mako: Don't leave yet! I'm on my way! _

Korra sighed and stowed her phone back into her pocket, rocking back and forth on her heels as she waited outside the university athletics arena. The game had been over for nearly half an hour and Mako hadn't shown up! Korra had expected herself to be angry about it, and she totally was, but she felt more alone than mad. It wasn't like Mako to not keep his promises. He said he'd be there, didn't he?

Initially, his absence made it difficult for Korra to concentrate on the game: what if he got in an accident? What if he tried stargazing and was mugged in the middle of the street? The possibilities flooded Korra's mind and were only halted when she received a message from him during halftime.

'When he gets here,' she thought venomously, 'I am going to kill him for making me worry…'

"Korra!"

'Speak of Vaatu…' Korra actually hated herself for being _thrilled_ to see Mako sprinting down the road, his red scarf flapping in the wind. She was supposed to be pissed, not happy! Korra actually had to exert effort to stop her from smiling at Mako. She held tightly to her irritation, planning on releasing it on her late, almost no good, no show friend.

"You're late!" Korra snapped when Mako stopped before her, wildly panting.

"I know, I know. I'm sorry I'm so late, Korra!" the words ran from Mako's mouth in a garbled mess, "I wanted to get you the perfect present before you went home."

Korra stopped the enraged tirade that had risen to her lips so she could look at Mako. A present? _That's _why he was so late? To get her something for the holiday? Unbelievable.

Slowly, blue eyes ran over Mako's panting figure. She realized that he must have been running for a while if he was _that _winded.

"Where did you come from?"

"The Hei Bai district."

"Mako, are you dumb? That's a forty-five minute commute from here!"

"I wanted to get you a present. And I did, so stop yelling woman, it's already been done!" he thrust Korra's present, a small blue package, into her hands.

Korra stopped the less than sweet retort she had stored up to observe the gift. She then lifted her gaze to her friend, who was still trying to catch his breath. Raava, that boy must have been running for a _while_ if he was in that state. And all of this to get her something.

Korra's eyes softened at the revelation.

Yes, he had been in a hurry, judging by his mussed hair and flushing cheeks. The warmth she felt whenever Mako was close by erupted in her heart and butterflies overtook the pit of her stomach. 'He went through all of that to get me a present,' she thought giddily to herself. The revelation made Korra want to grab the boy and dance in the street underneath the falling snow.

Korra felt all the breath leave her body as realization began to settle. _Of course_. Mako's little gesture done for her sake answered a lot of questions she had asked herself over the course of a few months. She clutched her gift firmly as she ran her newest thoughts over past conundrums. This new feeling would explain: why she was always irritated when women tried to flirt with him, why she always wanted to be near him and hold his hand and have his company, why she always seemed to miss him moments after they went home…it explained why Korra wanted to hold Mako closely to her body. It also explained how in that moment, with his thoughtful gift tightly secured in the palm of her hands, Korra wanted nothing more than to _kiss_ her best friend.

It had been a while and she was positive that she was out of practice, but Korra wanted to wrap her arms around his broad shoulders and pull him down to her height. She wanted to inhale the scent of cinnamon and the winter evening on Mako's skin, something that had always comforted her before without her realizing it. She wanted to gaze into the warm depths of his amber eyes the convey all the emotions that had come over her in that moment.

She hadn't even realized that she had stridden over to stand closely to Mako. Silently, the two stared at each other under the winter moonlight, their only source of light being the old streetlight they stood under.

Korra's heart was sprinting a mile a minute and nobody could stop her.

The overwhelming feeling that consumed her entire being was something she hadn't felt to this extent when she was with Asami. It was something new and absolutely terrifying. It was warm and exciting.

It felt a lot like love to Korra; she certainly hoped that it was love.

She wasn't stupid, she had been in love before, and she knew where she was headed with Mako at this point in time, standing underneath the falling snow with his gift clasped tightly in her hands. Korra just hadn't expected that it would sneak up on her like this.

That was the difference between Mako and Asami.

By constantly indulging on his company, somehow, she had managed to completely bypass the _like _stage and fall in love with stick-in-the-mud Mako. It was incredible. _Wasn't she just crying over Asami every night just this past summer? _

He was incredible.

"Thank you, Mako."

And she was falling faster. Korra's arms reached up to wrap around Mako's neck; everything had happened so quickly that Korra hadn't even known she was going to do it herself. But as soon as her forehead gently rested in the space between his neck and shoulder, Korra, for once, didn't regret her impulsiveness. With one hand clutched around Mako's give and the other gently holding the back of his neck, Korra squeezed herself against his body harder, hoping that he would reciprocate her actions. Or at least understand where she was coming from.

To her immense joy, she felt two strong hands slide themselves around her waist, pressing Korra even closer to Mako's body. It had been a while since she had felt so cherished by someone; Korra admitted to herself that she missed the feeling. Mako's hugs were the most comforting things that she had ever experienced; he was warm, his arms wrapped tightly around Korra's smaller from and his cheek pressed snugly against her dark tresses. Korra could feel her friend bend down so that he was breathing in her ear.

"I'm going to miss you, Korra," Mako confessed.

Korra laughed softly and nuzzled her head against Mako's cheek affectionately.

"I think I'll miss you more."


	12. treasure

"_Mommy, what's that ring for?" Mako looked up to his mother, who held a bright green ring in her hands. The woman smiled at her elder son and leaned down to show Mako the jewel._

"_It's your father's gift for the Glacier Spirits Festival. Everyone gets presents that day, remember silly?"_

_Mako tilted his head in confusion, "But why a ring?"_

_Wizened amber eyes twinkled fondly at her inquisitive son before answering, "It's a gift that you give someone you love back where Daddy is from. It's another way of saying 'I love you.'"_

"_But why do you need a ring for that?" _

"_Honey, someday, when you meet someone that you love, you're going to want to do nice things for them."_

"_Yuck!"_

"_Mako," his mother's laughter was sunshine and daisies against his ear. 5-year-old Mako pouted and pressed his face against the side of her leg. Gentle fingers curled in his soft hair, coaxing the little boy from behind his mother's skirt. She leaned down to his height, brushing a warm kiss to his little forehead. She offered him the ring; silently, Mako took it. _

_The ring was a little big resting against the palm of his hand. Mako could feel that this ring, unlike the gold band that adorned his mother's slim finger, wasn't metal. A closer look at the jewel told Mako that it was most likely made of a rock, which made sense since his father was originally from Ba Sing Se in the Earth Kingdom._

"_This is rock?"_

"_It's crystal from an old underground tunnel way back in the Earth Kingdom. There's actually a legend around the tunnel and these crystals, would you like to hear it?"_

"_Yes!" Mako eagerly piped up. His mother laughed softly before leaning over to scoop her son up into her arms. She carried him to the old rocking chair in the corner of the living room. The 5-year-old snuggled up against his mother's chest, listening to her steady heartbeat as she sang old tales of lost lovers finding their way to one another under the glow of crystals exactly like the one Mako had clasped in his little hands._

_The Cave of the Two Lovers would become Mako's favorite story to hear before bed._

* * *

><p>Gentle fingers folded back the creases holding Mako's gift. Korra wondered what was worth Mako running all the way across town for.<p>

'And something this small too,' she thought giddily, 'What is it?'

Slowly lifting up the top lid, Korra saw a bright green crystal, nestled in fine silks. She raised a brow. He got her a _rock_? Korra picked up Mako's gift, holding it between her forefinger and thumb; she brought it to her eyelevel and stared.

'Mako, what is this?'

She gasped in surprise when the rock began to glow brightly, illuminating her dark room. Bewildered, Korra stared at the shining jewel, wondering when the light would dim. Mako remained fresh in her thoughts the entire time.

"Bro, you got a package from the Southern Water Tribe."

Mako looked up from his book, "The Southern Water Tribe? It must be from Korra."

He tried not to look too excited at the news, but with his warmed cheeks, the frenzied light he was sure to be shining in his eyes, and the way his heart was leaping in his chest, hammering louder than the construction workers outside, Mako knew that it was near impossible.

Mako also knew that Bolin knew better.

"You're looking a little excited over there, bro."

"I'm sure I don't know what you're talking about," Mako replied haughtily, sniffing. Bolin's laughter was halted by the merciful buzzing of his phone, "Oh…it's probably Opal." He disappeared into his room, closing the door behind him.

After taking a few precautionary glances in the direction of Bolin's room, Mako lunged for the small box resting on the coffee table, ripping its contents open. Korra had already been gone for a week and a half and though they talked everyday on the phone or via webcam, Mako _still _missed her.

To his delight, Korra had always reiterated this fact every time he picked up the phone or went on Skype. Mako vaguely wondered if this was what long distance relationships felt like: going about your day without the person you loved close by, eagerly awaiting any phone call or text they would send you. He thought of the wholehearted joy that had settled over him last night after reading the four-worded text Korra had sent him (_Miss you, nerd. Night!_) before he went down for bed, cradling his device against his chest like a lovesick preteen.

On cue, his phone rang. Mako picked up before the first ring was finished.

"Hey!"

"_Did you get it yet?_" Korra demanded, "_Please tell me you did because the mail service around here fucking _sucks_ and—_"

"I got it," he interrupted, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips. "I haven't opened it yet though."

"_Well, what are you waiting for? Open the damn thing!_"

"I was getting ready to do that, Korra. You just called me right when I opened the box."

"_Well, check it out then, cool guy!_"

"Alright, alright!"

Mako opened the flaps to the package and reached inside the box. His fingers brushed against something smooth and cold; it felt like a jar. Frowning, he lifted the object in the air; his ears caught the sound of swishing. When inquisitive eyes landed on the jar, he saw that there was water inside.

"_Do you like it?" _

"You got me a jar of water?" Mako was confused. He knew that Water Tribe customs were very different from the United Republic, but _jars of water_? The sound of Korra sucking her teeth impatiently told Mako that he had guessed incorrectly.

"_It's not just a jar of water. It's water from the _spirit oasis_ in the North Pole! I had my dad get it when he was up there visiting my uncle and grandpa."_

"Am I supposed to know what spirit water is supposed to do?"

"_Well, it's no piece of _rock_ like what you got me—"_ she cajoled, cheerfully ignoring Mako's embarrassed protests, _"—but spirit water has special healing qualities. It's really good for medicinal teas and stuff. It tastes a ton better than the fish remedy that you love. I got it just in case you or Bo get sick over break and I'm not there to take care of you and your germs." _

Her tone was teasing, but knowing Korra, he knew what she meant: "I did it to take care of you while I wasn't there." A new wave of butterflies erupted in Mako's stomach and his eyes softened at the jar of water resting in his palm.

"Thank you, Korra. This is great."

"_Are you lying? Because I can totally take it back—"_

"No! No, really," he answered, "I love it. Thank you."

A beat later, he heard Korra murmur, _"You're welcome." _

In the background, Mako heard a woman, who he could only guess was her mother, calling Korra's name. She quickly answered before adding, "_Well, I just wanted to see if you got the package. I gotta go. I miss you."_

His grip tightened around his present at Korra's normal farewell. He answered after a pause, his stomach still in knots and his heartbeat running rampant in his chest.

"I miss you too, Korra."

* * *

><p>"Oh, were you just talking to Mako, honey?" Senna, Korra's mother, asked when her daughter emerged from her bedroom. Korra nodded happily before throwing herself onto one of the cushions surrounding their dinner table.<p>

"Yeah, I just wanted to see if he got my gift."

"Did he like it?"

"…he liked it."

Heat gathered in Korra's cheeks remembering the phone call she had just finished moments ago. What had Mako said? _I love it. Thank you._ The part of Korra that was so incredibly in love tinkered with the thought of Mako instead saying _I love you_. Her heart got caught in her throat at the notion; her grip tightened around the small crystal resting in the palm of her hand.

Senna set the table for herself and her daughter—Korra's father was still visiting in the Northern Water Tribe—and took her seat. Blue eyes not unlike her daughter's zeroed in on the crystal; it was glowing again. Senna scooped up her food onto a plate and dug in, secretly observing the crystal from the corner of her eye.

After five minutes of silence, she spoke up.

"So…is that crystal you've been making googly eyes at for the past five minutes Mako's gift?"

"What googly eyes?" Korra asked defensively, stowing the glowing rock away in her back pocket, "Nobody's ogling at anything. You're crazy, Mom."

"I may be old, but I'm not _blind_," Senna laughed, "Honey, I know what a girl in love looks like."

The knowing twinkle in the older woman's blue eyes embarrassed Korra. Tugging on one of her forelocks, Korra pulled Mako's gift out of her pocket with her freehand. It was still glowing. Senna leaned over the table to get a better look at it, beaming softly.

Though she had never met this Mako before, she was grateful that he was in her daughter's life. Senna's brother had made weekly phone calls during Korra's time at his restaurant, and with every phone call made, Mako's name would come up more often during their conversations. Now, with her daughter in front of her, happier than she had ever seen in months, Senna decided that sending Korra to work for Narook was the best decision she had ever done for her daughter.

Korra turned the crystal over in her palms, her blue eyes softening under its brilliant jade light.

"He's a good person, Mom," Korra confessed, "I don't even think I felt like this with Asami. Like, when I'm with Mako, I feel more like myself. I feel whole again, and it's been so long since someone has given me that."

"That's what happens when you're in love," Senna said, smiling brightly at her daughter. "Do you think he feels the same way?"

"Well, that's the thing!" Korra burst, "Sometimes I do, and sometimes I don't. Like he acts so normal around me, but then he does things like runs across town to get me this glowing _rock_ and—"

"Say, do you know exactly where that thing is from anyway?"

Korra stopped the one-sided tirade that had risen to her lips and held Mako's gift to her eye level, "Well, the card says it came from some cave close by Omashu in the Earth Kingdom."

Senna dropped her chopsticks, eyes widening immediately in realization, "A cave by _Omashu_? You're sure?"

"Uh, yes?" Korra didn't know what her mother was getting at, "Why? What's so special about it? It's just a souvenir right?"

Senna chuckled and extended her hand out to her daughter. Confused, Korra dropped the crystal in the palm of Senna's hand, watching in amazement as the glow faded. She held it up for Korra to see.

"I'm not too familiar with Earth Kingdom tales, but I'll try my best here."

* * *

><p>Korra strolled into her apartment two days later.<p>

The trip from the South Pole back up to Republic City wasn't too awful; however, because her return was so last minute, Korra felt exhausted by how quickly everything was going for her. She glanced at the calendar pinned against her bedroom wall, excitement growing in her stomach: today was the day of the Glacier Spirits Festival in Republic City.

The original plan was for Korra to celebrate the holiday back at home, but under her mother's strict instruction, she returned early. She beamed softly at the memory.

"_You don't really believe that, do you, Mom?"_

"_Of course, I do!" Senna insisted, "Have you never heard the Secret Tunnel song? Oh, here, I know it, I'll just s—"_

"_No, thanks, Mom. I'll just take your word for it."_

_Korra was skeptical about this whole 'love will lead the way' tale that was wrapped around Mako's little gift. Her mother firmly believed in the ancient tales from all four nations, and so when the topic of the glowing crystals came up, Senna got excited and started sharing old folklore from the Earth Kingdom. Korra knew that Mako was half Earth Kingdom, did he know anything about the Cave of Two Lovers?_

'_Obviously, if he knew where to get this,' she thought to herself, her heart pounding faster and faster against her chest. 'But why would he get this for me?'_

"_I think that boy is in love with you," Senna declared, answering Korra's silent question. _

_Korra stopped breathing._

_Mako? In love with her? The notion seemed utterly absurd, but at the same time, it made Korra feel as if the sun were rising for the first time. Should she hope? Should she really invest her feelings and hope that he felt the same way? Korra wasn't sure._

_Senna could tell her daughter was confused; after all, the only other important relationship she had been in didn't end too well for her. She wanted her daughter to be _happy. _Reaching across the table, Senna grabbed Korra's hand and placed the crystal back into her palm._

_It began to shine once more._

_Korra's head snapped up, gazing into her mother's eyes, looking for an answer. Senna tucked a strand of loose hair from Korra's face, tucking it behind her ear. She spoke softly to her daughter._

"_Go get him."_

"I don't know what I'm doing, Naga," Korra burst, storming into the living room, where her polar bear dog was comfortably settled on her bed. The great creature sat up, tilting her head curiously as Korra paced back and forth.

"Raava, I didn't think this through," she said, "What if Mom was wrong? What if that story doesn't even exist? This was a bad idea…Mako doesn't even know I'm _here_ and what if he has other plans? Naga, what do you think?"

Spinning around to face her best friend, Korra realized that Naga was looking past Korra toward the door. The sound of soft knocking sounded in Korra's ears sending her striding to the door. She swung the door open, her eyes bulging out of her eye sockets when she realized who her visitor was.

"Sorry for just suddenly swinging by, I just got here and I really wanted to see you," Asami Sato flipped her long, flowing raven hair over her shoulder. Korra was too stunned to return the tight hug Asami had pulled her in.

Her painted lips, still the same shade of plum Korra had remembered, curved into a small smile, "You look like you've seen a ghost, Korra. What's been going on with you?"

Korra didn't know where to start.


	13. tongue tied

"You got Korra _what_?!" Mako recoiled from his brother's big mouth. He'd expected Bolin to freak out over his present when he found out, but he never thought Bolin would leap from the table and scream in his face, wide green eyes trained on his face. Mako was growing uncomfortable under Bolin's shell-shocked expression and broke eye contact with him, tucking into his wanton soup; he was ravenous from running errands for Narook all day and he'd be damned if Bolin's gawking stopped him from eating.

Bolin threw himself down in the chair next to his brother, shaking his shoulder roughly. Mako grunted.

"Mako, don't you remember the story?! The one that Mom used to tell us?"

"Of course I do!" Mako snapped, "I bought it on impulse, besides we don't even know if it's a real legend."

"Oh, it's a real legend," Bolin replied nonchalantly, "And it's as old as—"

"Bro, I _know _you aren't getting ready to sing the Secret Tunnel song," Mako interrupted impatiently, "Korra's from the _Southern Water Tribe_. I doubt they share old Earth Kingdom stories—"

"—that are totally true—"

"And besides, even if it's from the cave by Omashu, I highly doubt it'll glow."

"Did you touch it when you bought it?"

"Not directly, no."

"Then you don't know, Mako!" Bolin threw his hands up in the air, "I'm trying to protect you from _heartbreak_ and you're making it so difficult!"

'Heartbreak.' Mako scoffed at the word. He had already accepted his fate, now it was matter of time until reality slapped him across the face hard. Sometimes, it was so easy to forget that the woman he had fallen in love with was previously in love with another woman. It was also easy for Mako to imagine that maybe; just maybe, Korra had feelings for him too. He wondered this whenever Korra called or Skyped him. Mako missed the crazy girl so much, it settled against his body as a physical ache keeping him up late into the night as a reminder that Korra wasn't there. Their daily conversations were never long enough. The phone reception and video quality never properly captured her enchanting laughter, which rang lowly in his ears, or her vibrant blue eyes, which shone with countless shades of blue that Mako often found himself drowning in.

"It's already too late," Mako answered cryptically.

Bolin leaned a little closer to his brother, "Excuse me? What?"

"I said it's already too late. The deed's been done."

Mako watched from the corner of his eye as Bolin took this information and allowed it to sink in. His eyes bugged and he swatted Mako's lunch from his hands, prompting the older boy to scowl at his overzealous little brother.

"Are you admitting that you're in love with Korra?!" Bolin's voice had risen at least two octaves. Mako rolled his eyes and resumed eating his lunch, shrugging apathetically.

"Guess I am."

"But Korra—"

"You don't think I'm aware of that?" Mako asked quietly. He stirred his chopsticks through his soup, watching the rising steam curling warmly against his wrist, "I didn't _choose _this, Bo. Do you think I'd put myself in this situation?"

Mako didn't expect anything from Korra. It wasn't her fault, just like it wasn't his fault that he had fallen so pathetically in love with her.

After all, Korra's interests were something that she was born with, and even if she couldn't return those feelings, he still wanted to keep her close as his friend. His best friend. And if the day came around when she met a nice girl who would cherish her in ways that he wish he could, well, he'd do his best to support her, even if his heart throbbed in agony at the notion of Korra meeting someone else.

"But why did you get her _that _gift?"

Though Mako didn't admit it, he firmly believed in the tale of the Cave of Two Lovers and when he had bought it, he was hoping that it would help Korra out in the future. Sure, she was over Asami, but Mako thought that it would be something nice to carry around in the event that she did fall in love again. It was a reminder to Korra that she _will _fall in love again, and whomever she picks will be the luckiest woman in the world.

Mako sighed.

"I don't know why."

* * *

><p>"You're dating Fire Lord Zuko's <em>grandson<em>? How did that happen?"

Asami laughed and nodded happily, "Yeah, we were in the same Equalist history class and we really hit it off. We all have to go out sometime, I think you'd like him."

Korra smiled, "That'd be great, Asami."

Contrary to what Korra had expected, catching up with Asami had been pleasant. Even now, as her ex-girlfriend ran her slim fingers through her meticulously coiffed hair, Korra could feel a companionable air settled between the two of them. Asami had been her friend before they fell in love, so perhaps it was possible to get back to that. With the way Asami was proposing plans to hang out over break, Korra could definitely see them becoming good friends again; she looked forward to it.

"And, of course, we have to find you a date as well. I've always wanted to do a double date, but I don't have too many friends at school who are dating someone," Asami babbled, "wait, how are you anyway, Korra? From our last phone call, you seemed a bit distracted."

"Oh, nothing really," Korra lied, cursing her poor acting skills when Asami raised a skeptical brow. Guiltily, she looked away, her eyes darting to the far corner of the park they were walking through. In the distance, Korra could see Naga happily chasing down some fire ferrets, her intent to play apparent in the way her tail freely wagged. Korra sighed, feeling jealous of her best friend; why couldn't her life not be complicated?

Again, Mako filled her thoughts; she really wanted to see him. Korra could feel the weight of her crystal in her jacket pocket. Subconsciously, she reached inside and gripped it, not really caring if it glowed in front of Asami. It had comforted Korra in more ways than Asami could have ever done when they were dating.

"Y'know, Korra, even if we aren't together anymore, I can still tell when you're lying," Asami quietly added from Korra's side.

"I know," Korra admitted. The two friends sat down on a cold bench in the park, not too far from the fountain where she and Mako enjoyed meeting at whenever they took Naga on walks. She felt Asami's gentle touch settle on her forearm; a few months ago, such a gesture would have thrilled her, but it amazed Korra how unaffected her heart was by it. It's just one more thing to confirm to Korra her feelings towards Mako; from the corner of her eye, she could see the glow of her crystal shining through the material of her pocket.

"Korra? What's wrong? You can trust me."

Korra glanced up at Asami, and after seeing the earnest concern in her jade gaze, Korra decided that perhaps it was best to get more input on this situation. Her mother had helped her immensely, but perhaps it would prove beneficial for her to get another situation. After all, it had been a while since she had done this, and she was highly doubtful that Mako had dealt with this.

Letting others know how she felt was never a problem; Korra was an open book, but what if her feelings weren't returned by the one who had helped her get over Asami? What if it really were just some pipeline dream that Mako would come to like her? Korra wasn't so sure anymore now that she was back in the city, days before she had planned.

Korra took her crystal from her pocket, drawing Asami's attention to the glowing rock.

"I fell in love with someone," Korra confessed lowly.

"Korra, is that what I think it is?" Asami asked, peering closer to the object. Korra nodded solemnly, "Yeah, my mom said something about an old Earth Kingdom story about lovers in a cave and whenever you think about your person, it glows—"

"Who is this person?" Asami demanded, effectively cutting off Korra's prelude to a heart aching tirade. When Korra looked at Asami, there was no denying the excitement that had completely taken over her. Her eyes wide and shining, her plum-colored lips curved into a wide smile; Asami knew something that Korra didn't.

"Uhm, he's this boy who works with me at my uncle's noodle shop. We go to school together."

"Tell me about him."

The words gushed from Korra's mouth with her even having to think about it, "His name is Mako and he's the biggest dork I've ever met. I met him this summer and we fought a _lot _when we first met, but I guess we grew out of it? I'm not too sure what happened, but after that we became good friends. We take Naga out for walks here every Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday and we share our lunch every day and he taught me how to bake this really kickass taro cake and he lets me hold his hand all the time and I really like him and I think we were meant for each other. Oh, and he got me this present for the festival and I came back to let him know how I felt, since, y'know, that's what you do during the festival, but now I'm not sure and I don't know what to do, Asami are you even listening to me?"

Asami was stunned.

"Uh, yeah, that was just a lot to hear," she smiled sheepishly, "He sounds like a good person, Korra. Um, you said he got you _that _for the festival?"

At Korra's affirmative nod, Asami's expression lightened up considerably. She clasped her hands against Korra's shoulders, startling the girl. "What?"

"Go to him, Korra."

"What do you mean—"

"I mean go to him. You came home for that reason, right?"

"…uh…yes? But how do I know that—"

"Korra! He gave you a crystal from the _Cave of Two Lovers_. It _glows _when you're in love. It's a traditional Earth Kingdom gift that couples do."

"What?" Korra shrieked, reaching up to grip Asami's hands, "You're telling the truth? Like, that's actually a thing?"

"Yes, Korra, that's actually a thing. Don't you even know the song?"

"That was not even in that song and you know it, Asami!" Korra snapped. "Spirits, who even made it up?"

"Well, that isn't the point; my point here is Mako probably feels the same way," Asami replied patiently, "I mean, think about it: he does all these nice things for you, he lets you _hold his hand_, and he gets you this super old school, but still totally romantic present _whose meaning you didn't even understand until recently_—"

"—it's not my fault I'm from the South Pole—"

"—and now that you basically have a confession right there, _you don't know what it means_!" Asami shook Korra, "I'm serious. Go to him. I'll take care of Naga. Just, go."

'There's really not much I can lose at this point,' Korra reasoned to herself, 'and even if Mako didn't feel the same way, he wouldn't leave me out in the cold like that…'

Now, that Asami brought it up; what was the point of Mako getting her such a present? It's one thing to get your friend a nice souvenir, but _this_? Something was suspicious about it, and the more Korra thought about it, the more she was convinced to go to him.

Korra was brought back to the night before she left for the South Pole, standing underneath a streetlight outside of the stadium. Heat filled her cheeks remembering Mako's strong arms wrapped tightly around her body, pulling her curves flush against his body. Her heart began to sprint at the memory of warm breath against her ear, murmuring, "I'm going to miss you Korra."

It was torture to be away from him so long, their conversations via phone or Skype never being long enough for Korra to get her fill of Mako's quiet chuckles and warm, amber eyes whose spark was lost in the grainy quality of her computer screen. She longed to see them again and hoped that they would be happy to see her too.

Korra's eyes drifted up to the sky, wondering if Mako wanted to see her, or if he was thinking of her too.

She'd made up her mind.

"Alright! I'm gonna do it!" Korra decided out loud. She hopped off the bench and turned to Asami, determination blazing in her blue eyes. Korra turned in the direction of Mako's apartment, stopped, and spun around to capture Asami in a tight embrace. Stunned, the older girl hugged her back.

"Even if we didn't work out," Korra murmured lowly in Asami's ear, "I'm still glad we work as friends, y'know?"

Asami beamed softly, "Me too. Now, get outta here."

"Right! Thanks, Asami. You're the best!"

Early evening had closed in, the sky a brilliant canvas of dark blue, over which a film of clouds had been placed; snow had finally begun to fall, lightly dusting the street. As Korra sprinted to Mako's place, she could hear the faint beat of drums coming from nearby; the festival had probably started. With her heart full of hope and a pocket full of promise, Korra ran to what she hoped would be her future.

* * *

><p>Mako had just taken out the egg custard tarts when he heard impatient rapping at his door. He frowned, removing his oven mitts. Bolin had left for the festival nearly an hour ago with Opal and he wasn't expecting him back until at least midnight. A glance at the clock hanging on the kitchen wall told Mako that it was only six in the evening.<p>

The insistent knocking continued.

"I'm coming, I'm coming!" Mako called, striding over to the door. He threw the bolt and opened the door, and was totally taken by surprise when he felt a body lunge at him, bowling him over and knocking him to the ground with a loud '_oof!_' He was pinned onto the floor by a heavy, but soft, weight, pressing against his body. A second longer, and Mako finally registered the strong arms wrapped tightly around his neck like vices and the laughter resounding in his ears.

"Missed me?"

"K-Korra!" he stammered, a happy smile breaking on his face. "You're early! What are you doing back?"

It was amazing to Mako how _whole _he felt again with Korra back in his arms. Any trace of sadness that was left from his earlier conversation with Bolin was wiped cleanly from his mind as he wrapped his arms around her and hugged her tightly, inhaling the scent of fire lilies dancing in the ocean breeze, something that was so uniquely Korra that he was reminded again of how tough it was to have her leave.

She leaned over him, beaming fondly down at him, "I had to tell you something, but first—" she lifted herself off of Mako, sniffing the air, "_Did you make egg custard tarts?_"

Mako sighed. It sure was nice to have Korra back.

The pair had grabbed the confectionaries Mako had just made and curled up on the old sofa in his dusty living room. In the corner of his eye, he spotted Korra nervously biting her lip, her concentrated stare flitting back and forth between her untouched egg tart and her lap.

"Is there something wrong, Korra?"

"No, nothing's wrong…" she said, "I'm just trying to go about saying this."

"Saying what?"

Was Korra finally going to tell him that she had met someone else over break, just like how Bolin warned? He tried not to let his imagination get the best of him, but it was really difficult not to with Korra twitching in the seat next to him. It was driving him insane.

"Korra," Mako said, reaching over to set her plate on the table. Against his better judgment, he settled his hand on Korra's clasped ones, frowning at how cold they were, "What is it? Just spit it out."

When Korra refused to speak, keeping her lips buttoned up tightly, Mako dipped his head low enough to capture the attention of her downcast eyes. An idea popped into his mind. If she wasn't going to say it, then he was going to draw it out of her; Mako knew how little patience Korra had when it came to long one-sided tirades that danced around the point. "Hey, what is it? You can trust me. There isn't anything that you haven't told me. Well, unless you robbed a bank, but I don't think tha—"

"I love you!"

Mako's words died on his lips; he gaped at Korra, who looked positively mortified by her sudden admission. Did he really just _hear _what he thought he heard? Slowly, he removed his hand from hers, and sat up straight, trying to allow Korra's words to sink into his mind.

"Wait, what?"

Korra flushed angrily and shoved him, "Ugh, forget it. Asami was wrong. I'm just gonna go—"

"No!" Mako protested, recapturing her hands in his again; he needed for her to say it clearly for him to understand; otherwise, he'd begin to hope more than he had before. "I'm just confused. You said that you," he flushed pink and grumbled out the latter half of his sentence, "you _love_ me?"

Miserably, Korra nodded, "I'm sorry it was so sudden, I don't know what came over me, but spirits Mako, you _know _I hate it when you try to give me those long pep talks and I guess I got really impatient…"

As she rambled on, Mako could feel the dull ache in his heart fade into something else. Something warm that consumed his whole being; it made his eyes sting and the room spin as the realization began to sink in. Those shy glances, the fleeting touches, the hugs, the phone calls, the moments of closeness they shared that made him so happy he could almost choke on the satisfaction he felt – was he really not imagining this at all? Korra was still talking, her cheeks red and her hands shaking in his—from his position, he could see the tip of his festival gift to her peeking out of her pocket.

The jade jewel glowed brightly at Mako, its brilliance growing in magnitude as Korra kept speaking. His breath stopped.

_"This is rock?"_

_"It's crystal from an old underground tunnel way back in the Earth Kingdom. There's actually a legend around the tunnel and these crystals, would you like to hear it?"_

_"Yes!" Mako eagerly piped up. His mother laughed softly before leaning over to scoop her son up into her arms. She carried him to the old rocking chair in the corner of the living room. The 5-year-old snuggled up against his mother's chest, listening to her steady heartbeat as she sang old tales of lost lovers finding their way to one another under the glow of crystals exactly like the one Mako had clasped in his little hands._

_The Cave of the Two Lovers would become Mako's favorite story to hear before bed._

'_I love you!'_

I love you.

"I'm in love with you, Mako, and I—" Mako had heard enough.

With a ferocity he'd never experienced before, he grabbed the back of Korra's head, his fingers weaving gently in her dark tresses and, for the first time with a happiness he didn't think possible, he pulled her face to his.

His lips touched hers for the first time.

Her lips, warm and soft, parted in surprise as Mako conveyed his utter happiness at this turn of events. For so long, he had restrained himself out of respect for their friendship, but now that he knew that it wasn't just him who had fallen, he was more than willing to make up for the lost time. Contrary to her fiery spirit, Korra's taste was sweeter than Mako had expected; he loved it.

Korra responded immediately, tilting her head into Mako's kiss, shutting her eyes tightly. Shifting closer to the man she loved, she wrapped her fingers in the worn threads of his red scarf, pulling him closer to her. The egg custard tarts lay forgotten on the coffee table as Korra pressed fervent kisses against Mako's lips. She raised her hands to his face, gently pulling him away from her; amber met blue at last.

With a sprinting heart, Mako leaned in again to brush his lips against Korra's chastely before whispering what she had been waiting for this entire time.

"I'm in love with you, Korra."

Laughter bubbled to her lips and she secured Mako's face against hers again, enjoying the way his fingers rubbed circles into her waist and the way he would tilt his head to capture her kiss better. She kissed him slowly; she kissed him heatedly; she kissed him anyway she could, making up for every single time she wanted to do it but was too afraid to.

"Spirits, I love you so much," she whispered, moisture welling in her eyes. Mako brushed her tears away with his lips, pressing multiple kisses to her forehead, temples, cheeks, the corners of her lips—

"I love you too," he confessed again, "I never thought this would happen to me, but I'm glad that it was with you. I love you."

Korra's present shined with the brilliance of a thousand stars, but Mako and Korra were too swept away in each other to notice.

It was a start.

* * *

><p>"Mako, try the cotton candy, here—" Mako accepted the piece Korra pushed against her lips, enjoying the sweet bubblegum flavor.<p>

He still couldn't believe what happened. Even now, as his _girlfriend_ (because that's what she totally was now) fed him pink cotton candy in public, Mako still couldn't believe that Korra had told him that she had fallen in love with him. He was still reeling from the experience of having her pressed snugly against him, her lips slanted against his, pressing desperate kisses wherever she could reach.

Mako caught Korra's eye and he knew she was thinking the same thing.

Slowly, his fingers sought out hers, linking their digits tightly; Korra grinned widely before leaning up to capture Mako's lips in another kiss.

"Woah, woah, woah! What's going on here?!" the new couple separated in time to see Bolin emerging through the crowd, Opal in tow, smiling knowingly at Mako and Korra. They blushed.

"Well?" Bolin demanded, disbelievingly looking between the two of them. Mako nervously scratched the back of his neck.

"Uh, we're dating now."

"You're _what_?" Bolin shrieked, "That's great, guys. I'm really happy for you, but, uh, don't take this the wrong way, Korra, but weren't you dating a girl?"

"I did, yeah," Korra confirmed; she winked at Mako and bumped her hip against his. "What about it?"

"But Mako's, like, a _dude_. I just kinda figured, y'know, since you dated a girl, you were kind of not into guys."

She laughed.

"Oh, you dummy. I like both," she explained, "I'm _bi_."

"Bi?!" Bolin parroted, incredulity settling on his features before he shrugged, "Oh, well, that explains it. Well, take care of my bro, Korra."

The girl snorted, "Will do, Bo."

With a wave, Bolin and Opal disappeared into the crowd again, leaving Mako and Korra alone again. She glanced up at Mako who smirked down at her, "Jeez. All that fuss and I didn't even realize that I had a chance from the start."

"What fuss?" she asked, picking off another piece of cotton candy for herself. Mako blushed at the memory of his self-inflicted anguish, "I thought because you were with Asami, you were only interested in girls. I sort of realized my feelings a long time ago, so it was pretty excruciating whenever I thought about it."

"Oh, you dork!" she exclaimed, throwing her arms around his waist, "You could have asked, y'know…"

"Really?"

"Yeah."

"I'll have to remember that the next time," he grumbled.

"Why?" Korra asked, "You plannin' on finding another bi girl to date?"

Mako laughed heartily before dropping a kiss to her forehead.

"No, I think you're the only company I'll be needing."

Korra smiled brightly and squeezed Mako, "Likewise, City Boy. Oh, and by the way, Asami's in town and we have to go on a double date with her and her boyfriend soon. I already said yes, so you're just gonna have to deal with it."

Mako didn't mind so much, especially since he was now the one who held Korra's heart.

It was a fair trade, and Mako couldn't have been any happier with it.


	14. epilogue

"There he is!" Bolin threw his arms around Mako's shoulders, squeezing him tightly. Mako grinned widely and hugged his brother back, ignoring the bright flashes from the cameras going off. "I'm so proud of you, big bro."

"Thanks, Bo."

The summer afternoon sun beat down on the crowd gathered outside the Beifong Police Academy. Immediately after Mako had graduated from the university with his Bachelor's in criminology, he had enrolled into the prestigious Beifong Police Academy. His first few weeks there had been rough, but with the support from his friends and family, he was able to graduate at the top of his class under the watchful eye of his mentor, Chief Lin Beifong. Mako could see the older woman over his brother's shoulder; her lips quirked upwards in a small smile and she nodded at him approvingly.

Mako was to report for duty under Chief Beifong's tutelage the following week, but for now, he was going to enjoy his free time while he had it. Bolin patted Mako's back and stepped aside to allow the next person in line to congratulate him.

His gaze fell on his favorite person, whose chuckles had his heart thrumming against his chest. It was amazing to him that even after 3 years of being together, Korra still made him feel like that 19-year-old who clumsily fell headfirst in love.

Mako registered Opal recording the encounter from the corner of his eye before returning his attention fully on Korra. He allowed his eyes to drift, taking in her breathtaking beauty. Vibrant blue eyes, which still very much had that fire he had fallen for those years ago, twinkled mischievously; Mako didn't have to search very hard to see the love and pride oozing from Korra. After all, she was his main source of support during his time in the academy. More often than not, Mako would return to the apartment black and blue and mentally exhausted from his course work, but every time, he could count on Korra being there with open ears and words of encouragement.

Mako noticed that Korra's hair, which she had chopped short last week during one particularly punishing heatwave, was piled at the crown of her head in a bun. He was momentarily distracted by the fly-aways dancing in the gentle breeze, casting a brilliant shine underneath the sunlight. His eyes roamed over the magnificence of her smile, stopping at the ornately carved stone resting against her neck; butterflies broke out into the pit of his stomach again.

It had only been a month since Mako proposed to her—he'd popped the question one rainy morning in the comforts of their bedroom where Korra found the betrothal necklace nestled between the folds of the red scarf Mako no longer wore—and Korra was so attached to it. It pleased him how the only time he had seen it off of Korra's neck was when they showered and when they went to bed. It had taken him _months _to carve the damn thing, but seeing how happy Korra was with it, Mako knew that it was totally worth it.

She was totally worth it.

Korra stepped forward.

"I must say, officer," Korra began, slowly approaching him, "you're looking rather dashing in your uniform."

"Well, thank you, miss," Mako replied playfully, ignoring the collective 'awws' from their audience when Korra wrapped two arms around his shoulders. Mako grinned down at his girl before stooping down to envelope her in a tight embrace. He lifted his fiancée off her feet and twirled, his heart bursting at the seams with the joy that he felt.

"I'm so proud of you, Mako," Korra whispered to him.

"I love you," he whispered back earnestly. Mako never forgot to tell Korra that; whether they were leaving their home to do their daily tasks or going to sleep or doing things as mundane as cooking dinner, Mako never forgot to remind Korra of this basic fact. And every time, Korra always replied the same time, without missing a beat.

"I love you too," Korra tilted her head upwards, lips pursed expectantly for a kiss that Mako was only too eager to give. The second his lips brushed against hers, another camera flash went off (most likely Opal or Asami) and Mako made a mental note to get a copy of it at a later date.

* * *

><p>"I must admit, sweetie, you've got that taro cake recipe down. You might even be better than me at this point."<p>

"An entire week in Ba Sing Se with Grandma Yin can greatly increase your taro cake baking skills, I'm just saying." Korra chirped happily, hopping into bed with her fiancé. Mako laughed and sank deeply into the warmth of their shared comforter, smiling fondly when he felt Korra cuddle up against him, laying her head on his chest. Gentle fingers traced a soothing, but possessive, line down her spine; she shivered at the contact.

This was the typical bedtime routine for Mako and Korra: shower after dinner, jump into bed, and cuddle either until they fell asleep or until they succumbed to the palpable tension that would sometimes surge through their bodies like bolts of lightning. Those kinds of nights were Korra's favorite, though she did appreciate the days where she would just curl up against Mako, listening to his easy breathing, his steady heartbeat. Today was that kind of night.

For a while, the couple remained like that, utterly content with their lives in this moment. Half an hour passed before Korra spoke; she spoke in a whisper, her warm breath tickling Mako's neck.

"I wanna marry you." His fingers stopped at the small of her back.

"You already are, Korra," he chuckled softly. Mako felt her shake her short tresses against his neck. "I wanna marry you _now_."

"Sweetie, it's midnight."

"I know that, Mako," Korra said. She sat up and quickly scrambled over her fiancé, her legs firmly planted on either side of his hips. Mako raised a brow and Korra grinned down at him, drumming her fingers lightly against his chest. "Doesn't change that I still want to marry you right now. I don't wanna wait till the Fall. You have work and I'm starting my master's program at the university in two months. Let's get married."

"Korra…"

"Please Mako?"

Mako hummed appreciatively as Korra leaned down, pressing several kisses from his jugular to right beneath his ear; his focus scattered momentarily when he felt her nip at his earlobe, her breath warm against his skin. Calloused fingers slid up Mako's sculpted chest to cup his cheeks, Korra's thumbs rubbing gentle circles against the light stubble growing in.

Mako's hands found purchase at Korra's hips, squeezing gently when the girl's lips met his for the umpteenth time that afternoon.

Mako could feel the coolness of Korra's betrothal necklace against his throat, leaving behind a trail of goosebumps as Korra continued to kiss him sweetly. She sunk eager fingers into his coarse hair, her trimmed nails scratching against Mako's scalp; he sighed into her mouth, and sat up so he could pull Korra closer against his body.

Korra broke away from Mako, grinning cheekily at his flushed expression, "Well, Mako? Can we?"

Mako's amber eyes fell on her betrothal necklace and quickly shifted to Korra's Glacier Spirits Festival gift he had given her three years ago; ever since being place in their bedroom, the crystal had never stopped glowing. Even now, as they exchanged sweet words and kisses, Mako could tell that the rock's magnitude had grown, sparkling brilliantly on top of Korra's study desk.

On either side of the glowing crystal were pictures of Mako and Korra during their time as boyfriend and girlfriend; one by one he reviewed them all, fond memories flooding his mind. He could see the group photo of he and Korra, having a double date with Asami and Iroh and another group date with Bolin and Opal. Mako spotted another photo, which had been taken during their trip to Ba Sing Se last spring: they had taken a tour of the Earth Palace and stopped by to take a picture of the current king's pet bear; Mako was _terrified_ while Korra couldn't stop laughing long enough to take a decent picture. The oldest picture stood closest to the glowing crystal: a photo from Bolin's 18th birthday where Mako and Korra sat in his old apartment, covered in flour and smiles. He smiled fondly at the memory before leaning in to chastely kiss Korra.

"Mako?" she asked again when he broke away from her, "Can we?"

Sitting there, with the most amazing person in the world right in his arms, Mako realized something: he didn't want to wait any longer to call her his wife.

"We'll go to the Clerk's office tomorrow morning."

"Yes!" Korra flung her arms around her lover, promptly knocking the man over onto his back, their collective laughter ringing through their apartment. "Does that mean we get to go on a honeymoon too?"

"_Honeymoon_?"

"Yeah, a honeymoon, cool guy! You up for a trip to Omashu this time around? I really want to visit the cave."

Mako took one look at the excited light in Korra's eyes and found him unable to deny her request. He nodded.

"As long as you don't have me take pictures with any _bears_ or badgermoles, I'm willing to go anywhere with you."


	15. Companion piece: Literally

**Note: **This is an Irosami companion piece to the main story. Also, if you can guess who I've fashioned Iroh after, we can be best friends.

* * *

><p>Asami rarely got nervous; however, considering it was her first day in her Equalist History course and the professor was said to be utterly relentless, the sophomore supposed that there definitely was a first time for everything. Having read about Doctor Noatak's distaste for tardiness, the 19-year-old had made sure to arrive fifteen minutes early, selecting the seat in the back corner of the room. Though an excellent student, Asami always preferred taking corner window seats in the back; it gave her enough open space to think and with recent events in her life, she needed all the room that she could get. Unbidden memories flooded the second year's mind; she bit her lip, green eyes shut tightly as her heart began to throb.<p>

_'Korra, this isn't working between us.' It had killed her to say it, but it was true. They had been fighting too frequently; Korra was starting her life out in Republic City, a full 2,000 miles from Ba Sing Se. Asami's father was based in Republic City, but she could only return on holidays, when Korra would return back to the Southern Water Tribe. _

_She didn't want to hold herself or Korra back with a complicated long distance relationship. Though she still loved Korra dearly, Asami knew that their relationship wasn't going to last, since almost every single one of their conversations ended up with her angrily hanging the phone up and crying into her pillow until the next morning. She had missed her girl _so _much, but Asami had a responsibility to secure her future. And the reality was that she wasn't willing to put anything or anybody over that. Even if it was the person she loved._

_'If it's really meant to be,' she thought to herself, hastily wiping away the tears that had begun to roll down her face, 'then we'll find our way back together.'_

_"Asami, please," Korra pleaded through the phone; her voice, which was usually so strong and full of life, shook, "We can make this work. If we just try—" _

_"We've been trying for the past nine months, Korra," Asami reasoned. Spirits, her heart _heart _so badly. She didn't want to hurt Korra, but she knew this was what was best for them, "We're holding each other back; it's better this way…"_

_A beat passed._

_Two beats._

_Three._

_Four._

_The line was so quiet that Asami could have sworn that Korra had stopped breathing. Long, thin fingers clutched her mobile tightly, holding it to her ear as if it were a lifeline. She needed Korra to say something. She needed Korra to say _anything_, even if was an 'I hate you.' She just wanted to hear her voice one more time before they parted ways._

_"I-If that's what you really want, Asami." _

_It was, but _Raava_ it still hurt to accept this. She squeezed her eyes shut as she answered Korra clearly. "It is. Thank you for the best three years I could have ever asked for. Good-bye, Korra."_

_Korra hung up without saying good-bye. The tears Asami had tried so hard to fight again gushed down her face as her sobs shook her body. The girl curled up on to her bed and surrendered herself to her misery, apologizing profusely to someone who would never hear it. 'I'm so sorry, Korra,' she thought over and over, 'I'm so sorry.'_

_It was the first of many nights that Asami wouldn't sleep._

The sound of someone unceremoniously tossing their bag down on the table brought Asami out of the bitter memory; she glanced over her shoulder to observe the newcomer.

"Asami Sato!"

"Hey, Iroh," Asami greeted, "I didn't know you were taking this class."

"That's because I literally just signed up. I had enough room for another elective."

"Me too."

"That's cool. Seriously, I'm glad to see someone I know in one of my classes. This is my third for the day and I haven't seen _anybody_."

"Wait, your third?" Asami interjected, lifting her wrist to check the time, "Iroh, it's only 11 in the morning."

The corner of his lip quirked upwards into a smile, "Exactly. I started at 5."

"_Five_?" she parroted, "Are you crazy?! Classes don't even start until 8"

"It would seem like that, huh?" Iroh's soft laughter rang in Asami's ears, prompting the girl to laugh along with him. "I literally start every morning with a jog from the apartment down to the wall and back."

Prince Iroh of the Fire Nation was an odd thing. She had met the second year International Relations student the day she moved into her apartment; he was actually her neighbor in a tiny apartment complex smack dab in the center of the upper ring of Ba Sing Se. She wasn't too surprised to find out that he was Fire Lord Izumi's only child. After all, it wasn't uncommon for world leaders to send their children to Ba Sing Se; they had an excellent politics department that many of their alumni benefited from. So, it wasn't particularly perplexing to discover that the Fire Nation prince was double majoring in international relations and military leadership.

What was surprising to Asami, however, was his _friendliness_ towards her and everybody else who so much as looked in his direction.

Prince Iroh was _literally _the nicest person Asami had met. And the strangest, even though his peculiarity was a welcome distraction.

"So how many classes do you have after this?"

"One more, but then I'm volunteering to help feed the homeless in the lower ring right after and then I was going to try out a new fire flakes recipe. I heard that it was literally the greatest thing ever. Did you want to try some? I could bring some over if you wanted."

"Oh, that's okay," Asami declined, "fire flakes are usually made with dragon pepper and I'm—"

"Allergic?" Iroh interrupted, excitement gleaming brightly in his amber eyes, "Me too. If I eat even a morsel of the stuff, my body could shut down, so that's why—" he paused and dug in his bag, rustling around for a moment before producing a sheet of paper, "—I came up with a recipe _without _the dragon pepper! It's gonna be amazing. Did you wanna give it a try, Asami?"

Again, she didn't understand her neighbor. He was always bursting at the seams with positivity and optimism, but the man was making an effort to get to know her and, at this point, Asami knew that she needed some positivity to help her heart heal from her most recent heartbreak. Her dark lips curved upwards into a smile and she reached over to gently pluck the sheet from Iroh's hand.

"Okay, but I'm expecting it to _literally _be the best thing I've ever tasted. Can you promise me that?"

He answered without missing a beat, "Definitely."

And when Iroh stopped by Asami's apartment with fresh fire flakes in a bowl, Asami was pleasantly surprised to discovered that the Fire Nation prince wasn't lying about his recipe. It was literally the best thing she had ever tasted.


End file.
